Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home
by Junosphere
Summary: Kim Morgan is returning home after 6 years spent running from a future her family couldn't control, she meets and falls for Jared despite the fact he ignores her, how will she react when he imprints on her 2 years later & what's going wrong with the twins
1. Prologue: Welcome to La Push High

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**A/N: Ok this is my first ever fan fic so I please be nice **

**Oh and please review I really want to know what you guys think!**

**Junosphere**

**PS. I've edited this chapter so that the paragraphs are easier to understand! Please tell me what you think! Edited 9th August **

Prologue – Welcome to La Push High

'_My first day, Yay!'_ I thought sarcastically. I hitched my school bag higher on my shoulder and marched in through the front doors of La Push High. This is my 7th school since I was eight, when we left La Push, promising we wouldn't come back. It was just after the twins 4th birthday and Grandma Esther lost it, not that she wasn't already odd but she really went off her rocker. Muttering stuff about 'cold ones' and genetics and 'werewolves' and how Daniel and Isaac were 'going to be next'. What really got me was that mum and dad took her seriously.

I mean I love Gran and all but she was a senile, 75 year old woman nothing she said made sense. I just couldn't believe it when they uprooted the family, moving me, my sister and two brothers away from everything we knew over my superstitious grandmother's ramblings. Our family spent six years running away from whatever it was my grandma had scared my parents with. This might have continued had Gran not died. So we came home; planned her funeral, put her affairs in order, that was three months ago. When mum enrolled all of us in school, Sarah and I were pretty sure we were here permanently. David and Isaac are at the primary school down the road; Sarah and I are here, La Push High.

'_God this is gonna be fun!'_ I though with renewed sarcasm as I peered at faces I hadn't seen in six years but felt as if I had never met of them in my life. Approaching the front office I spotted Sarah sitting in one of the chairs beside the door. I took the seat next to her. She looked gorgeous as usual; dark brown hair in ringlets, silky smooth russet skin that seemed to glow and perfect make up. I sighed glancing down at my own apparel knowing I would never look like her. I noticed her dark eyes scanning the ceiling and her hands were bunched in her lap; she was nervous. I cleared my throat, poking my tongue out at her and going cross eyed at the same time.

She giggled, covering her mouth with her delicate hand, her brown eyes showing her mirth. Once she recovered she jerked her head, gesturing to a group of kids about our age. I looked over, GOD the girls were acting like complete sluts; the way they were flirting with those guys. Not that they weren't worth flirting with but, god could they be any more desperate? Not that their clothing left much to the imagination either; tight, low cut tank tops and miniskirts that could hardly count as an item of clothing. This was the Olympic Peninsula for crying out loud! I rolled my eyes at Sarah and she just shook her head.

One girl from the group noticed my scrutiny and proceeded to stare back. I fixed her with my best 'look down my nose' glare, 'What are you looking at!' I accused. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Sarah shaking her head in disapproval as opposed to disgust. The girl blinked and did what I call 'the sweep', 'Oh nothing just checking out the latest freaks to walk through the doors of La Push High,' she said smugly with a toss of her bleached blonde hair, 'God they're just letting any old trash in now days.' My mouth literally hit the floor, 'Who the hell do you think you are? I hissed violently.

Throwing off Sarah's restraining hand; I stalked over to 'Blondie' unleashing the full force of my green eyed glare on her. She took a step back, so she wasn't as oblivious to the waves of hostility that were rolling off me as I first thought. 'Excuse me?' she said placing her hands on her hips and coming to stand toe to toe with me. 'You heard me,' I had a good foot and a half of height on her so I used that too my full advantage, 'You can't just go around calling people that, especially not me and my sister,' I said as calmly as possible considering the situation. Blondie turned around and gave those standing behind her a smug look causing a few of them to laugh which only infuriated me all the more.

'Gisele I think that's enough, you don't need to do this babe,' said a deep husky voice, one of the few people who weren't laughing. I looked up to glare at him but was instead met with a pair of deep brown eyes. 'Oh relax Jared, I'm just amusing myself,' giggled Blondie whose name was Gisele, I tore my gaze from...Jared and returned my attention to...Gisele. 'Oh so being the granddaughters of Esther Ann Morgan warrants me and my sister being classified as trash now?' I asked furious at the knowledge she was 'just amusing herself'.

A gasp rippled through the crowd of people whom I hadn't noticed watching our run in. My grandmother throughout her life had been a respected member of the La Push community, always involved in community activities she even took over my grandfather's position on the council after he'd passed away. The news of her death had sent shock waves through the community; over the past two months so many people had come to the house bearing food and expressing their sorrow at my grandmother's passing.

I shook my head at Gisele's shocked expression; she and the rest of the school had no idea who or what they were dealing with. I stalked back to my seat beside Sarah, her expression was unreadable but I could tell she wasn't happy with me. The rest of what seemed to be the entire student population of La Push High were still standing in shocked silence at what had just happened between Gisele and me.

The headmistress chose that particular moment to waltz out of her office and into the corridor seeing nearly all of her students standing there like gargoyles, let's just say she was less than impressed, 'No loitering in the corridors, move along head straight to homeroom,' she said gruffly as students began to head off to class, 'Ahh Miss Sarah Morgan and Miss Kimberly Morgan if you will follow me please, oh and welcome to La Push High,' she said walking back into the office.

'Great way to make friends Kim,' Sarah whispered out the corner of her mouth before following the headmistress inside. Yeah welcome to La Push High indeed!


	2. Chapter 1: English Class

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**A/N: OK...Little disappointed that there were no reviews... Really want to know what you guys think; I'm not the greatest of writers so any advice would be great! Junosphere**

**P.S. Forgot to mention, I am NOT Stephenie Meyer, I'm just borrowing her characters... **

**P.P.S Chapter edited 9****th**** August 2010**

Chapter 1 – English Class

2 years later...

'Kim! Earth to Kimmy!' whisper yelled Deb throwing a scrunched up piece of paper at me. I flinched, breaking out of my reverie and returning to my 3rd period English class. I grumbled, I hated it when anyone called me Kimmy or Kimberly for that matter, but I guess I should have been grateful. I'd been staring at the back of _his_ head again imagining what it would be like to run my fingers through _his_ thick dark locks...Ahh! Dangerous territory, _very_ dangerous territory must focus on other things beside _him_. Must focus on Shakespeare and Romeo and Juliet and... 'Ow! What!' I whisper yelled turning in my chair to see Deb pointing at my desk using the ruler she'd just stabbed me with. I sighed and unfurled the paper projectile she'd thrown at my head moments earlier.

_What's with all the starring? You aren't slipping into obsessive stalker mode on me AGAIN!_

I frowned at the crumpled piece of paper and quickly scribbled back...

No! He's An Arrogant Toerag Who Possesses Less Brain Cells Than A Neanderthal!

I glanced over at Mr Barker, he'd dozed off in his chair; I swear I could see drool forming in the corner of his mouth. Taking advantage of this I tossed the paper back to Deb taking delight in witnessing it hit her face. She glared at me using the full force of her ice blue eyes. I giggled and made a face at her she laughed under her breath mouthing, 'That's my girl!' Deb could never stay mad at me for very long. I turned back to my desk, returning my thoughts to Romeo and Juliet.

'Kimmy was staring at the back of dick fuck's head AGAIN!' Deb announced, before being shushed and pulled into chair by 3 different people. 'Could you say that again, I think someone in China missed the memo!' I hissed sarcastically turning beetroot red, 'Oh and how many times do I have to tell you, DON'T CALL ME KIMMY!'

'Oh bring it down an octave Kim it's not like it's a secret or anything,' she said tucking into her lunch. 'Guys, HELP!' I said turning to my two other friends only to find them giving me disappointed looks. 'Oh COME on you don't actually agree with her do you?' I asked, incredulity spreading across my face.

'Jeez, get a grip Kim, EVERYONE knows except for HIM!' Bek cut in jerking her head over to where 'he' sat with his friends; hoeing into their lunches and exchanging obscene remarks. I groaned and put my head in my hands, 'Is it really that obvious?' I asked watching as my three best friends nodded their heads. My friends returned their attention to their lunches, leaving me to mull over what they had said.

_He_ of course was none other than Jared Thail; it was _he_ who had made my life completely miserable by using every bit of his good looks and charisma into charming me to fall madly in love with him. I have been in official insane obsessive crush mode since my first day here 2 years ago. I can't explain why I liked him especially since we'd never said more than six words to each other in the 2 years I'd been back.

We did the whole 'hi' 'bye' thing in the corridors before and after school, he'd often ask me for help in class or ask to borrow a pen having forgotten his own...GOD! I thought way too much about a guy who barely spoke to me once a week...well I guess that was a two way street. 'Incoming!' hissed Eve ducking to obscure her figure behind her textbooks. Bek and Deb proceeded to do the same, I however wasn't fast enough.

'Ah Kelly, SOOO nice to see you enjoying your,' Gisele glanced at my flattened, half eaten sandwich, 'eh lunch?' she asked in her annoyingly whining voice. Her two drones Margot and Simone giggled like she'd said something terribly funny. Gisele and I had been at odds since our run in on my first day back, mostly because of Jared. She had him, I didn't; she had him wrapped around her little finger where as I could barely get him to talk to me.

'Oh Gertrude, I'm surprised you even recognised it considering you haven't eaten lunch in what...2 years maybe longer,' I glanced around at the girls, hoping they'd back me up. Eve was suddenly fascinated by an ingrown fingernail, Bek was preoccupied with her shoelace despite the fact she was wearing slip – ons and Deb was reading through her Physics textbook despite the fact it was upside down! I shook my head and proceeded to glare at 'Queen Bee' and her drones I wanted to laugh; Gisele looked like I'd forced her to eat carbs and Simone and Margot looked...well...confused.

Realising she'd been standing at my table longer than necessary, Gisele fixed me with one last glare before flouncing over to Jared's table and throwing herself in his lap. Simone and Margot blinked, looked around to see that there leader was gone before rushing over to the table where Gisele was unashamedly flirting with Jared like there was no tomorrow. I grimaced and turned back to my friends who were all wearing the same sympathetic expression.

Eve shook her head, 'God that girl makes me sick,' she muttered with disgust, furiously tearing her sandwich in two. I looked down at the remains of my lunch and pushed it away. Something about her made me lose my appetite; conversations with her always left a bad taste in my mouth. Bek placed a hand on my arm jerking me out of my foul mood, 'We've got dance rehearsals tonight, so you might want to eat that, Bek said before wadding up the remains of her lunch.

I reluctantly finished my sandwich before the bell rang. I took one last glance over to where Gisele stood with Jared, to find him looking slightly annoyed with her. His eyes met mine and for the briefest of moments I was ensnared in the deep pools that were Jared's eyes. I broke eye contact first feeling my face blush scarlet, I was being ridiculous. I looked over at the clock...shit! I was going to be late.


	3. Chapter 2: Encounters

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Yay, a review, I'm happy to know that you guys like my story so far... Lots of things happen in this chapter, I'm not entirely happy with it so I may change some things at a later date but please let me know what you think Junosphere **

**P.S. Edited 9****th**** August 2010**

Chapter 2 – Encounters

'Step 1, 2, 3, 4, Lift those knees don't get sloppy ladies!' Ms Gatsby continued to count out the steps to the routine we were set to perform in a month. The other girls around me quickened their steps as the tempo increased. 'Miss Dubois, PLEASE keep up! I will not tolerate any mistakes on the day!' Ms Gatsby yelled she was right this dance recital was too important. Scouts from dance academies around America would be coming to watch us and hundreds of other students compete for a spot in their prestigious academies. I loved dancing it was something that enjoyed without my family butting in; it kept me sane all those years we were...away.

I wanted nothing more than to have dancing and music in my life so getting an invitation to one of these dance academies was super important and there was nothing I wouldn't do to get in. The song finished and we completed the routine...well almost. Gisele (UGH!) was too busy concentrating on her perfect fingernails that she tripped and managed to knock the front row of people over. Ms Gatsby was less than impressed, 'Miss Dubois, how many times so I have to tell you, PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU ARE DOING!' she screeched throwing her arms in the air to emphasis her point.

Gisele just stood there, hands on her hips tapping her foot in annoyance, _'Of all the nerve, she stuffs up the routine and then has the gall to stand there and pretend she's done nothing wrong!'_ I thought furiously. I went over to help Bek out of the wreckage, 'Anything broken?' I asked pulling her up off the floor. She winced rubbing her lower back, 'Just bruised I reckon, nothing a hot bath wouldn't fix,' she said as we made our way made our way off the stage to collect our things. We exchanged goodbyes with the other girls before leaving the auditorium. Gisele remained behind still arguing with Ms Gatsby over her stuff up.

'Do you want a ride home?' asked turning to wave to Carmel from our Maths class. 'Nah, I'm good I'll just walk home it's not that far,' I gestured to my short cut through the forest. 'Kim you know I don't like you walking home that way...' Bek frowned. 'Oh you worry too much Rebekah Andrews, I'll be fine,' I promised, giggling when she glared at me. 'Well if you're sure...' she trailed off that worried look never left her face. 'I'll be fine,' I promised again, 'look if it makes you feel any better I'll text you as soon as I get in,' she nodded and walked towards her car. I started off towards home through my short cut.

OK I know what you're thinking; it's 7 o'clock at night, its pitch black and I'm walking home through the forest. That exact thought has crossed my mind once or twice and has also crossed my mother's mind when she'd discovered my short cut to school. I know she placed a lot of stock in the old legends but come ON they were just tall tales invented to keep us out of the woods, _'Remember Kimberly, you don't know what's out there,'_ my mom would say to me every morning before I headed off to school.

I honestly think she was surprised every time I came home in one piece. I think she half expected me to come home bloodied and injured...a twig snapping alerted me to another presence jerking me out of my thoughts. My eyes scanned the surrounding forest for any signs of life. Nothing...all was silent. Even the smaller night creatures seemed to have ceased breathing. _'Pah! Get a hold of yourself Kim. There's nothing out there, your mind is just playing tricks on you,'_ I thought readjusting my grip on my bag and continued walking. I'd been walking for another 10 minutes when I heard a low rumbling growl, it shook the very ground I was standing on.

I froze and once again scanned the surrounding area for any signs of life. I found the source of the growl and soon noticed a bright, large pair of eyes shining in the darkness. I could barely make out the shape of the animal, but it was huge, it towered over my small frozen form. Was it a bear? No it may be the right size but wrong...shape... 'It's a wolf,' I breathed. Then my body seemed to be back under my control again and that moment was all I needed, I ran.

Gran was always telling me when I was little _'Never turn your back on a wild animal Kimberly!'_ she used to say. I ignored that advice now as I ran for my life from the wolf that most likely wanted to eat me. Unfortunately running for your life in the dark in a forest full of trees with enormous roots isn't the smartest thing to do. Blinded by tears of fear and coupled with the fact I'd completely forgotten about the tree roots, I tripped and fell; but I didn't let that stop me I just got back up and kept on running.

I was bordering on hysteria when I spotted the house beyond the trees. I pounded across the backyard and threw the back door open. 'Kim is that you darling?' Mom appeared in the doorway. She started screaming when she saw me, 'David! Come quick!' she screamed pulling my exhausted and battered body into the house. I caught a quick glimpse of myself in the mirror as my hysterical mom dragged me through the house. I was a complete mess; blood was streaming from deep cuts on my knees and head, bruises were forming on my arms and tiny cuts lined my palms and forearms.

'Get the car, Kim needs a doctor!' she screeched as she pulled me into the living room. The twins were sprawled out on the tiny couch, mouths agape either from Mom's reaction or my appearance. I could hear the sound of an engine rumbling to life outside, Mom threw me into one of the armchairs and rushed around getting ice and towels and anything else she thought I'd need. Dad ran back inside looking around until he spotted my comatose form in the armchair.

He came and knelt on the floor in front of me placing both hands on my shoulders, 'Kim what happened?' he asked gently a nice change from mom's screaming. Daniel and Isaac had gotten off the couch to come to stand at Dad's elbows and started whispering. My head was throbbing, mom's screaming and the twins' whispering was making my head hurt. I just couldn't take it anymore Dad and the twins were too close and the room was swimming and...then...blackness...


	4. Chapter 3: Emergency Room & Explanations

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Hey guys, sorry I haven't updated in a while been really busy preparing for Chrissie day and all so here's the latest instalment in my Kim and Jared fan fic! Oh a big shout out to nali9 who has added this fan fic to her fav stories. Luv Junosphere**

**Oh and I'm not the divine Ms SM I'm just borrowing some of her werewolves and humans**

**P.S Edited 9****th**** August 2010**

Chapter 3 – Emergency Rooms & Explanations

I spent the night in the emergency room and it couldn't have been anymore embarrassing; thank god I don't remember any of it. According to Daniel, Mom's screaming grew worse after I'd passed out and she had to be sedated when we reached the hospital. Isaac had managed to get himself lost and ended up in the Forks Maternity Wing; Dad was furious at him for wandering off in the first place and had gotten into an argument with the doctors over it. God could my family be any more humiliating?

Daniel had been keeping me company ever since I'd woken up; by choice or by force I didn't know. Anyway he'd dozed off in the only chair in the room and I had no idea where Mom, Dad and Isaac were. I threw my thin sheet off and hopped off the bed, sharp pain shot up my legs and into my knees, 'Argh! Fuck!' I looked around seeing if I'd disturbed Dan. I verified that he was still asleep and took a glance down at my knees, shock and horror coursed through my veins as I took in the sight of my bruised and swollen knees.

I stumbled over to the bathroom to check the rest of my injuries. I gasped, I had five stiches running just above my left eyebrow, a black eye and bruises and scratches running up and down my arms. 'Holy shit!' I breathed, poking the skin around my eye, 'Ow!' I moaned walking out of the bathroom. Dan was still asleep; he looked kinda of adorable, well as adorable as a 12 year old boy can be, 'Dan, Danny wake up,' I whispered, shaking his arm. He jerked awake, flinching when he saw my face.

'What are you doing out of bed! You shouldn't be out of bed!' he thundered shooing me back under the covers; I was too shocked by his reaction and touched by his concern to protest. Then something weird happened he just started shaking, violently shaking like he was gonna explode or something. 'Danny,' I whispered reaching out to touch his arm, 'Danny it's alright, I'm back in bed, I won't get out again, I promise,' I soothed patting his arm. Then just like that he calmed right down, a smile lighting up his features. 'Sorry,' he said shame faced and went to sit back down in the chair.

'Dan, where's everyone else,' I asked after a few minutes of awkward silence. 'Dad had to take Mom and Isaac home because of...well you know,' I nodded my head, 'and I think that Mom and Isaac have since been banned from the hospital,' he said I shook my head only my family could irritate the hospital staff so much to get themselves barred from the hospital. Dan sat up in his chair and licked his lips, 'Kim what happened out there, you practically catatonic when you got home.'

I smiled wryly, 'Do you even know what _catatonic_ means?' I asked raising an eyebrow. He grinned again, 'No stop dodging the question, unless you can pass out at will now,' we both laughed at that. 'I don't know Dan; I was just walking home the normal way and...' I faltered, biting my lower lip, Dan nodded for me to continue, 'out of nowhere this enormous wolf appears and I just panicked, I ran and I tripped and well you know the rest,' I finished.

Dan had a thoughtful look on his face, then his shoulders started to shake; it looked like he was choking or maybe he was having a repeat of the episode he'd had before...'Oh Dan! Grow up!' I leaned over and smacked his arm; that just made him laugh even harder, 'It's NOT funny Daniel!' 'Sorry sis,' he said once he'd recovered, 'but you _tripped_! Honestly sis that's LAME!' he chuckled. 'I don't find it funny either Daniel Morgan,' said a gruff voice coming from the doorway.

'Hey Dad, hiya Doc,' I said relaxing back into my pillows. 'Hi sweetheart,' Dad said walking over to the bed, kissing my forehead. 'Can I go home now?' I asked turning to the doctor, who was checking my charts. 'Well that depends,' he said checking my eyes and my stitches, 'I'm putting you on bed rest for a couple of days and when you go back to school you'll have to be on crutches so you don't rip the stitches in your knees...like you already have, he said frowning at my knees. I exchanged a glance with Dan; the idiot was grinning his head off. I ducked my head, 'Oops,' 'Don't worry that can be easily fixed,' the doctor said peaceably, attending to my knees.

'Bek, for the last time, I'm fine you can stop apologising,' I said in exasperation. I'd been home two days and both my Mom and Bek had run themselves ragged trying to _keep me comfortable _as they put it. Bek, because she felt guilty thinking if she'd given me the ride home I wouldn't have been _attacked_ as she put it and Mom well she was just being my Mom. Honestly they were both as bad as each other it was just a lot of unnecessary fuss.

'Hiya cripple!' I sat up in my bed noticing my other two best friends skulking in the doorway, 'Hey I was wondering when you two would show up,' Eve and Deb walked into the room; Eve plonked herself down on my rug, Deb sat on the end of my bed and Bek had already claimed my desk chair. 'Now ALL my girls are here!' I crowed happily throwing my arms in the air.

Bek, Deb and Eve exchanged amused looks, 'What kinda pain meds they got you on anyway,' Deb snatched the bottle off the bedside cabinet, 'see it says here 2 pills every 6 hours not 4 you dope!' Eve threw her a dirty look while I poked my tongue out at her. 'What's in the bag?' I asked noticing the rather large and heavy looking object Eve was trying unsuccessfully to hide behind her back. Her face fell, 'Don't get too excited but...Mr Barker, Miss Emilio, Mrs Davis and Mr Ridgeway all say get better soon!' she said rather quickly upending the contents of the bag into my lap.

Ugh, English, Music, Maths and Biology in that order. 'Gee thanks,' I grumbled, smoothing out the sheet music from Miss Emilio. 'Anything else?' I asked glancing at my 3 best friends. They exchanged that familiar _should we tell her_ look, 'What now!' that caused them to start laughing, 'WHAT!' I yelled in confusion. 'Well if you must know a certain someone hasn't been seen at school since Tuesday lunch,' Bek giggled, I rolled my eyes; only the mention of my idiotic crush on Jared would send these three into hysterics.

'Is that it!' I asked. My friends looked dumbfounded. 'Oh we were under the impression that you'd be pleased to know that Jared Thail is pining for you,' Eve said batting her eyelids at me. That just made them laugh even harder. 'God Eve! You all know that in his eyes I don't exist!' I said in exasperation.

Deb frowned at me, 'Well the eye ball sex you two were having at lunch two days ago suggests otherwise,' she gave me a knowing look. I blushed scarlet and proceeded to glare at her. 'Betcha ten bucks he's not at school tomorrow which would mean he's NOT pining for me!' I challenged folding my arms across my chest. 'You're on!' said a chorus of voices. Then we all burst out laughing.

**Okay left a couple of clues in this chapter which will get explained a little later and if I don't update before the 25****th****, Merry Xmas to all those who celebrate Xmas and Happy Holidays to the rest of you Luv Junosphere **


	5. Chapter 4: Absences

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Yay! More reviews! I'm glad people like my story! I'll try and update quicker next time! Anyway enjoy this latest episode in my Kim and Jared fan fic! Oh and keep reviewing I get a kick out of you guys reviewing. Honest they make me smile for ages after I read them! So please keep reviewing! Junosphere **

**Oh and I'm not SM!**

**P.S Edited 9th August 2010**

Chapter 4 – Absences

'I believe you all owe 10 bucks?' I said leaning my crutches up against the table and sliding into my seat. The girls begrudgingly handed over the money, well except for one, 'Deb hand it over,' I said tapping the pile in front of me. She mumbled something intelligible but handed over her ten dollars. 'Pleasure doing business with you ladies,' I purred, fanning myself with the money. Eve threw a croton at me, 'Lucky guess,' she muttered.

I sighed I could hardly concentrate during English, I'd been irritable and fidgety but I played as annoyance at the pain in my knees. It wasn't like this was an unusual occurrence for Jared; he'd spent more time out of school than he had in. I don't know why but I just got this weird feeling that something wasn't quite right. He wasn't the only unexplained absence either, Paul hasn't been seen since 2nd period Biology when he'd chucked a massive fit in class.

I was there when it happened; Mr Ridgeway was having a go at him about a late assignment and he just got really angry and started shaking the same way Dan had at the hospital. He'd been holding onto the leg of the chair he'd been sitting on and he'd managed to snap it sending him onto the floor. The class erupted into giggles while Paul had fled the classroom still shaking. When he didn't show up for his next class the rest of us assumed he'd just ditched like Jared.

Still thought it was odd though, maybe they were connected; Jared's disappearance, Paul's outburst and Dan's odd behaviour... I just shook my head. Bah! I was being stupid and paranoid. Jared and Paul were just doing what any normal teenage boy would be doing, especially if they hate school. I was over thinking this; instead I focused on my lunch and the conversation flowing around me...

'Hey Kim do you want a ride home tonight?' Bek asked as we made our way to our lockers. 'Yeah that'd be great! Saves Mom coming to get me,' I said gratefully. Mom and I had an argument the night before about how I was planning on getting to school. She wanted to drive me I'd take the bus. In the end we compromised that I'd catch a lift to and from school with Bek.

Oh and I'd also been banned from using my 'short cut' too. 'You know Bek we need to AHHHH!' I screamed as my crutches gave way underneath me. One flew behind me the other out front. I did a combination of a demented somersault and a commando roll, landing heavily on my left knee. 'Argh! MOTHER FUCKER!' I screamed clutching my knee in agony. I heard an annoyingly high pitched peal of laughter, 'Oh Kelly you really need to pay closer attention to where you are going,' Giselle trotted off down the corridor followed by her snickering entourage.

'Kimmy is that you I hear cussing like you're about to die?' Quil Atera bounced into view closely followed by his two friends Jacob Black and Embry Call. 'Har har you're a real comedian Q-tip, now where's that stupid bitch, I need to hit something!' I growled loudly trying and failing to get up. Next thing I know I'm whisked up off the ground and am being cradled in Quil's broad chest as he gallops, (I'm not kidding!), towards the nurse's office, 'Put me DOWN Quil Atera! BEFORE I break your nose!' I threaten.

'Pipe down Kim this is much quicker than having you hobble down here with a bruised and bleeding knee,' 'Oh dear!' exclaimed the nurse as Quil glided into the sick room placing me on the bed. 'What happened to you Kim?' she asked kindly, pressing a compress to me knee to preserve the stitches.

'Ah Giselle Dubois and co. kicked her crutches out from underneath her, miss,' Quil cut in before I could answer. I glared at him for speaking for me; he brushed it off by flashing me a melt worthy smile that a girl weaker then I would have swooned for. I dragged my gaze back to my knee, scowling at it. 'Kim! Kim are you ok?' Bek's worried frame suddenly appeared in the doorway, rushing in to stand at Quil's elbow. She was soon followed in by Embry and Jake.

If I hadn't been in so much pain I might have laughed; it looked so comical. Quil and Bek shared worried looks; Embry was sneaking glances at Bek out of the corner of his eye and Jake just stared at his two best friends behaved like complete lunatics. 'Well dear the bleeding's stopped but I'll bandage it up for good measure,' she said patting my arm. 'Hey any of you think of grabbing my crutches?' I ask raising an eyebrow. Bek flushes red, in her arms is my backpack, she glances at my face trying to gauge my reaction.

'It's ok I got them,' Embry says producing the crutches from behind his back. Bek flashes him a glowing smile of thanks which he eats up. I clear my throat and Jake elbows Embry in the ribcage, when he still doesn't respond Quil snatches the crutches from his grasp. I shake my head and exchange a glance with Jake who just rolls his eyes. 'Thanks Q-tip,' I say a bit louder than necessary when I'm upright.

'Bek...um...can you take me home I kinda want my pain meds?' I ask. 'Sure,' she stutters moving out of Embry's line of vision. 'Bye you guys thanks for all your help!' I call over my shoulder as Bek and I exit the nurse's office and head towards her car.


	6. Chapter 5: Where the Hell is He!

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Hi guys sorry I took so long to update, this chapter was really hard to write but I know a few of you have been missing Jared so...enjoy! Junosphere**

**Oh and I'm not SM!**

**Edited 9****th**** August 2010**

Chapter 5 – Where the Hell is He?

'Where do you think he is?' I mused for what seemed like the hundredth time in the past 2 weeks. I'm sitting on bench out the front of school watching the slow trickle of students and other unknowns enter the building. I cop a clip to the back of the head, 'Ow! Hey what was that for,' I whined rubbing my head, 'In case you haven't noticed I need them brain cells.' I shoot Deb a piercing glare. 'Kim why are you so concerned about Jared, frankly I'm glad I haven't had to deal with him or the other pricks that have gone missing over the past few weeks,' she says brightly.

'Yeah, yeah I know, I know he's a dick fuck,' I interject before she can say anything. 'Oh don't be so hard on her Deb, for all we know that boy could have got himself into a shitload of trouble, we never know,' Bek chimed taking a bite of her apple. She lounged on the damp grass next to the bench Deb and I occupied. I caught the tail end of what she had said, 'Jared's in trouble!' I wailed my alarm showing up on my face.

Bek and Deb took one look at my face and burst into laughter. Deb nearly fell off the bench and Bek started crying because they were laughing so hard. 'What's so funny?' inquired Eve as she plonked herself on the grass in front Bek. 'Nothing,' Deb said making a big thing out of wiping an imaginary tear from her cheek, 'just Kimmy being a comedian,' she guffawed. I balled my hands into fists and glared at her. 'Oh _Jared's_ _in_ _trouble!_' Bek mimicked, badly, sending her and Deb into fits of giggles again.

Eve cleared her throat, 'speaking of Jared, I have news!' she squealed, my ears perked up the minute she'd said the magic words. She turned to face me launching into her tale, 'Word around town is that both Jared and Paul have been spotted in the company of none other than one Sam Uley,' she exclaimed bouncing up and down where she sat. 'So! I don't see anything unusual about that,' Deb yawned.

I shushed her Eve clearly wasn't finished, 'Anyway you know how there's been some weird things going on with Sam since last year, apparently he disappeared into the woods for 2 weeks last year and came out a completely changed man he's all about 'Quileute pride' and protecting the tribe and all that,' she was really getting excited now, 'he's been getting away with all this really strange crap ever since then, apparently all three of them ran a drug dealer off the Rez last week, I swear they could murder someone and still get away with it,' she finished taking a breath.

Deb and Bek looked confused while I had a rare light bulb moment. 'So what you're saying is that you think that Sam's disappearance last year and Paul and Jared's disappearances most recently are connected?' I summarised, she nodded vigorously still gulping down air. Bek and Deb eyed me quizzically. The bell rang so I was saved from having to explain as we rushed to homeroom.

I had just one lesson left before lunch; English which had become boring and torturous in the absence of Jared. I tapped my pen on my desk impatiently. Mr Baker was later than normal; I turned in my chair to talk to Deb, 'Alright class no more talking open your books to Act 2, Scene 2 and read through the scene, take notes and write down anything you wish to discuss,' he said as he flew through the door, 'Ah Mr Thail how kind of you to grace us with your presence,' it was that exact moment that I turned back to the front and caught my first look at Jared in two whole weeks.

He was standing in the doorway looking uncertainly round the room almost like he was afraid of something. My mind went blank as I drank in the sight of him, like a drug addict who hadn't had a hit in weeks. His long dark locks had been cut off to within an inch of his head, he'd shot up and filled out considerably; he'd always been tall but now he was almost 6'4 and his muscles...Oh GOD his muscles he'd been buff before but this was madness!

How could he possess a god like body like this in only 2 weeks! I blinked several times to make sure I wasn't hallucinating...nope he was still there, still unbelievably god-like...and even more out of my reach. It wasn't fair. I was having a hard time staying in my seat, especially when all I wanted to do was throw myself into his strong arms.

My scrutiny was interrupted, when Mr Barker threw his folder onto the desk, **(A/N: I had a Geography teacher do this, he also liked to ditch whiteboard textas at students heads and 9/10 times they reach their mark)** 'Mr Thail for the LOVE OF GOD take a seat and the rest of you eyes on your work!' I realised where I was and what I was doing as opposed to what I was supposed to be doing and turned back to Romeo and Juliet who now seemed far less interesting. Jared strolled into the classroom and slide into the chair he had not occupied in two weeks.

All my nerve endings seemed to burst into flame the closer he came. Now I REALLY was having a hard time staying in my seat. I gripped the edges of my chair and forced my eyes to read what was on the page in front of me. _'Screw Shakespeare, Jared's back!'_ the small part of my brain that was 100% focused on Jared cheered. I locked myself down in my chair, ordering my body not to break rank or do anything that could cause me to be hospitalised with a severe case of school based mortification. Mr Barker handed Jared a synopsis of the last few scenes we had taken notes on and asked him to copy them down and read them for homework.

A few minutes passed uneventfully. I peeked a look at the clock; I had half an hour, if no one spoke to me or did anything weird I could survive without causing SBM. 'Um...Kim,' _oh no, no no no NO_, 'do you have a pen I could borrow?' asked a familiar deep husky voice, the one voice I'd been craving and fearing to hear in equal measure. _Shit, shit, shit, SHIT! What am I gonna do!_ My brain was panicking and my eyes broke rank first, glancing up at Jared's face.

His expression changed from neutral to that of a blind man seeing the sun for the first time. For another brief moment I was once again lost in the deep dark pools of Jared's eyes. It was hypnotic, like his eyes were stealing secrets and fears from inside my heart and were seeing straight into my soul. I blinked robotically, 'S-Sure,' I stuttered, unclenching my fingers from my chair and moving mechanically to retrieve a pen from my pencil case.

I quickly handed him the pen and hastily dropped my eyes back to my work. _Oh my god, OH MY GOD! Jared Thail just spoke to you and you're behaving like a MINDA! _I pushed my fingers against my temples and tried to control my breathing which was moving very quickly into hyperventilation. After a few minutes of insanity I managed to get my breathing under control. I tried hopelessly to get my mind to concentrate on...what were we doing again?

GOD! What was wrong with me? ME, Kim Morgan; strong Kim, impulsive Kim, feisty Kim, well she'd obviously flown out the window the second Jared had turned his attentions on me. _Wait was he still staring at me?_ I peered at Jared through my eyelashes, yup he was still staring. _BUGGER!_ I took a deep breath and gathered up my meagre supply of courage, 'Penny for your thoughts?' I asked, looking in his direction and lifting an eyebrow. His face changed, breaking into a goofy lopsided grin the minute I'd opened my mouth.

I shook my head feeling slightly amused. Obviously his brain had gone into meltdown and he was running purely on liquid membrane. 'Something wrong?' I asked a small amused smile appearing on my face. 'No,' he said forming a perfect 'o' with his lips then grinning to match my own. I was about to say something else when I was interrupted by a knock at the door, 'Mr Barker, sorry to interrupt but may I borrow Kim for a moment?' asked Ms Gatsby she was hovering in the doorway shifting her weight from one foot the other.

I frowned, what did she want? Mr Barker nodded his head for me to go and I rose quickly from my chair and followed her outside. I could feel Jared's gaze boring into my back even with a wall between us. Ms Gatsby had that look on her face like she was about to do something unpleasant. I frowned again, 'What's wrong Ms G?' I asked folding my arms across my chest. 'I'm sorry Kim, I hate to have to do this to my most gifted dancer but...I'm cutting you from the recital,' Ms Gatsby said holding my eyes to gauge my reaction.

My insides fell, I wanted to throw up, I wanted to scream at Ms Gatsby, I wanted to go and kick Gisele Dubois's bony little arse across the quad, but I let none of these thoughts show up on my face. Ms Gatsby laid a hand on my shoulder interrupting my mental image of drop kicking Gisele into the path of a bus, 'I truly am sorry Kim, but I didn't want to risk your knees you've only just had the stitches out a few days,' she said squeezing my shoulders, 'sorry Kim,' she said leaving me standing in the middle of the corridor outside an English room I was in no fit state to enter.

My thoughts were all over the place as I assessed my options. No. 1 I could walk back into class and face Deb's questions and Jared's freaky but not necessarily unwanted staring. No. 2 I could ditch the rest of English and hide somewhere til lunch. Or No. 3 I could stand in the middle of the corridor looking like an idiot. I took a deep breath, fixed a neutral expression on my face and picked option No. 1.

Jared was still unashamedly staring at me when I quietly entered the classroom, his face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. Deb shot me a curious look and mouthed 'what did she want.' I shrugged and mouthed 'tell you later,' back. Partially satisfied she turned back to her work. _One down one to go!_ Jared swivelled in his chair to face me as I slid back into mine, 'Are you ok?' he asked, his voice filled with sincere concern and his face displaying a worried expression. _Maybe my expression was not as neutral as I first thought_.

I froze his question surprised me, 'Um...I honestly don't know,' I admitted. I slapped a hand across my mouth like I'd just revealed a life or death kind of secret. _Since when I have been this honest, especially with Jared._ A grin spread across his face and I could feel the red blush creeping up my neck and into my cheeks. I was saved once again by the bell. I don't think I've ever moved so fast, I packed up my stuff and was out of the door so quickly I think I set the new land speed record.

My escape was slowed by the enormous crowds of students heading for their lockers or the cafeteria. My target was the girls' bathroom which was 5 metres away. 5 metres too short it turns out, 'Kim! Kim!' Jared called. I moved faster if I stopped he'd catch me in no time. 'Jared, haven't seen you in ages, babe!' Gisele squealed intercepting and cutting Jared off from his goal of reaching me.

I felt a sudden tug towards Jared and was contemplating listening to the green eyed monster inside and going and giving Gisele a piece of my mind. However my original goal was only 2 metres away, I turned back to where Jared and Gisele were glancing between them and the bathroom door. I looked Jared in the eye on my third glance. His face lit up again and his eyes pleaded 'rescue me!' I shook my head and darted the last 2 metres into the girls' toilet. _'Yes! Safe!'_ I thought sagging against the door, _'then why do I feel so guilty?'_

**So what do you think? I'd like to know; also I want to know if I should do a Jared's pov or just leave it at Kim for a while. Anyway PLEASE review and let me know what you think!**


	7. Chapter 6: Evasion & Plans

**Secrets,** **Werewolves** **and** **Coming** **Home**

**Hi guys here's another chapter, hope you like it! Please review I really want to hear what you think. Oh and I also have some ideas for other stories but I don't think I'll start writing them til I've gotten more into the storyline of this one. Anyway enjoy!**

**P.S Edited 9****th**** August 2010**

Chapter 6 – Evasion & Plans

'Eve is the coast all clear?' I hissed, flicking my sunnies down my nose and peering up and down the hall for any particular signs of life, *cough*Jared*cough*. It had been a week since that fateful English class and I had been going out of my way to avoid him which was a huge inconvenience on my part. I was forever changing the normal routes I took to class and never travelled between classes alone. There were only two places that I couldn't escape Jared and his penetrating gaze; English class and the cafeteria.

Eve peeked around the corner and motioned for me to follow her; I still kept scanning the surrounding area as I slunk around the corner and entered the cafeteria. Deb waved us over and we scooted over to the table. 'Shit, he's here already! Why! Why is he always here first?' I groaned resting my head against the table. Bek patted my back comfortingly, 'don't worry he'll get the message and revert back to normal form,' she said through a mouthful of sandwich.

I shook my head, no; there was no way that Jared was going to 'get the message' and 'revert back to normal form'. This was different; this wasn't just some silly little obsession that he'd get bored with in a few days; this was something different, something powerful, something that could move mountains and divide oceans. I don't know how I came to that conclusion but I could just feel it. That little tug was still there too, still trying to pull me in Jared's direction and I was still resisting but I didn't know for how much longer.

He'd moved away from his usual table with the jocks and sluts and picked one of the more deserted ones right in the corner where few would notice him, except for the few who sought him out. Gisele was glancing between Jared and me every few minutes; her blue eyes were bloodshot and she looked like hell and you know what I couldn't find it within me to feel an ounce of sympathy for her. On the other side of the room Quil was shooting death stares at Jared when he thought no one was looking and for the life of me I couldn't understand why...

'So Kimmy what are you planning to wear for Halloween?' Deb asked slyly, slurping yogurt off her spoon. I cringed, the Halloween Dance was fast approaching it was less than two weeks away. 'I don't know Deb, and you are not dressing me again this time, I'll never forgive you for that hoochie mama monstrosity you put me in last year!' I said lifting my head off the table and jabbing a finger in her direction.

I blushed at the memory, Deb had managed to convince me to dress up in what she called a 'kinky' nurse costume, let's just say kinky is an understatement. Anyway everything went smoothly for a little while until Gisele tripped me over and I managed to split the back of my skirt. She gave me a rueful look, 'Hey it's not my fault that Gisele had to go and be her normal bitchy self!' I rolled my eyes and rested my head on the table.

We sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes as the cogs ticked over in my head, 'Eureka!' I yelled suddenly, causing everyone within a 2 metre radius to jump out of their skins. 'Uh oh Kim's having an idea!' Deb said, sarcasm lacing her words. 'It's brilliant!' I exclaimed my eyes glazing over. Eve snapped her fingers in front of my face, 'Earth to Einstein, what's this _brilliant_ idea?' she asked impatiently. 'Is she having a fit?' Bek whispered poking my shoulder.

I turned to focus on her, 'Are you thinking what I'm thinking?' I asked, grinning. She snorted, 'Probably not,' then she had an epiphany, 'You're not! Oh Kimmy that's a bad idea, do you hear me a BAD idea!' she exclaimed looking ever so slightly deranged. I giggled, 'What on EARTH are you thinking of?' she leaned over and whispered in my ear, Eve and Deb exchanged dubious looks at our vague conversation.

'WHAT! You Rebekah Andrews are lunatic! You know there's no WAY in hell I would do that!' I yelled, I whispered MY idea in her ear. A grin spread across her face, 'Brilliant!' she laughed. I inspected my fingernails feigning nonchalance, 'Yes, I know isn't it!' The both of us burst into laughter at my tone.

'I think they've both lost it!' Eve stage whispered, earning a piercing glare from Bek. She turned back to me, 'you know we're gonna need more dancers,' 'Yeah I know, let's go send a mass email to the others,' She nodded as we both left our seats heading for the nearest computer room.

Later that day, I walked into the auditorium to see a flustered Bek trying to get the attention of the 20 other girls in the room. 'Help,' she whispered, gesturing to the group. I smirked, shaking my head; I walked over to the nearest chair and stood on it, 'Hey! HEY!' I yelled cupping my hands around my mouth; they stopped their chattering and turned in my direction. 'Ok you all know why we're here,' I said hopping off the chair, 'and you would have already noticed that Gisele and her drones are not,' there were a few snickers through the crowd. 'I picked you guys because I know in all of you I have the best jazz and cabaret dancers in the school, maybe even Washington State,' there were a few nods, Bek started smirking. 'So ladies, let's get started!'

**Oooooh I wonder what Kim's planning!**


	8. Chapter 7

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Yay! I'm at double digits in reviews!! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far and to everyone who added this story to their Favourites. And another big thank you to everyone who has added me to their Favourite Authors list, I feel very blessed to know you guys like what I'm writing even if this is just my first fan fic! I'm not on hiatus by the way I'm very busy with school so updates might take a little longer than normal, but please keep reading and reviewing!! Oh and I'm not SM!**

Chapter 7 – Is it Just Me or is There Too Much Testosterone in Here!

'Hey Bek,' I yelled, breaking into a run to catch up to her, 'how's the _Hallo_.....,' 'Shhh!' she hissed, grabbing my arm and dragging me into the girl's bathroom, 'are you out of your mind!! You can't just go around yelling about this stuff, anyone could hear you!!' she shrieked dragging me around the room to make sure no one was there. I winced, 'Sorry! Sorry! Would you mind?' I asked looking pointedly at my arm which was slowly turning from red to purple. She gave me an apologetic look and released my arm. 'How are we going costume wise?' I asked my voice barely above a whisper.

'Well I emailed the all girls and we are all convening at my place this weekend to do any last minute touch ups or alterations, Carmel and Ariel both have access to sewing machines and know how to use them so including you and me that puts us at 4 working machines which will speed things up,' she said counting things off on her fingers. 'Oh and I asked around and everyone agrees that you should take the lead part,' she finished smirking at me. I froze, wow I didn't realise the girls had this much faith in me. The Halloween Dance was definitely going to be something to remember.

'Kim! Bek's here!' Mom called. I readjusted my black bob wig ensuring none of my wild curly hair escaped. I finished putting the final touches on my makeup, took one last glance at my reflection, grabbed my red trench coat and clutch and rushed downstairs. 'I'm off then!' I yelled, my stilettos clacking on the wooden floorboards. I donned my trench coat, 'Kim!' Mom called appearing in the doorway, tea towel in hand, 'have fun tonight love,' she said kissing me on the cheek.

She stepped back and took another look at me, she chuckled, 'Sarah would be bouncing off the walls if she could see you right now,' her eyes tearing up as she spoke. My eyes began to mist up as well at the mention of my absent sister. An impatient honk from outside broke through the sad moment, 'bye Mom, bye Dad,' I called, side stepping mom and heading for the door. I'd just shut the door when another shrill honk pierced the night air. 'Alright! I'm coming!!' I yelled jumping off the porch and rushing for the passenger's side door. 'Well it's about time! Whoo woo Kimmy!!' Deb yelled, Eve stuck her fingers in her mouth and let out a shrill wolf whistle.

I laughed as I slid into the car, 'look at you guys!' I exclaimed as Bek pulled out of the driveway and sped off down the road. Bek was wearing a black trench coat which hid most of her costume, but I could see bits of fringe poking out from under her coat. Her hair was curled and fell loosely to her shoulders, she looked absolutely gorgeous. Eve and Deb on the other hand, in true Halloween spirit were dressed as policewomen. Eve had added a pair of aviator glasses and handcuffs to her outfit, Deb had an old water gun which had been painted to look like a real one. 'Who was the idiot who gave Deb the gun?" I joked, ducking as she took a swing at my head. We all chuckled, Bek and I had let the other two in on the secret about a week ago when asked them (begged more like it) to pose as police officers for our little plan. They were a little grumpy at first but were buoyed by the fact they would be _arresting_ me at one point during the night. 'Have you got the disc?' Bek asked throwing me a sideways glance as she pulled into the school parking lot.

'Right here!' I said smugly, producing the disc from within the depths of my clutch, 'Now all I've got to do is sweet talk the DJ!' We all started laughing at the thought of me sweet talking anybody. 'You ready?' Bek asked jerking her head towards the front doors of the auditorium, where the dull thud of music could be heard blaring. 'Let's do this!' I said pushing open the car door. The auditorium suddenly looked very intimidating; I sucked in a deep breath, squared my shoulders and strolled over to front doors with the girls at my side.

'Hi girls, nice costumes!' I stopped and gawked as Gabe, the school's resident sleazebag and Ivy League jock in training stepped out from under the shadowy eaves and planted himself in front of the auditorium doors. 'It seems that the trench coat is a popular accessory for the ladies this Halloween,' he remarked fingering the edges of my coat. I shuddered, side stepping him; he'd been after me since I'd moved back and like any girl with half a brain I'd avoided him like the plague. 'What do you want Gabe?' I asked arching an eyebrow; I was not in the mood for his little mind games. 'You know what I want,' he breathed, his voice laced with innuendo...and alcohol. 'Ugh! Yuck!' I complained pushing him away, 'what did someone spike the punch already! Uck!' I put my hand over my nose and stalked past him.

'Oh don't be like that Kim!' he grabbed my arm and swung me around to face him, pushing me up against the wall, 'Come on be reasonable, Kim,' he purred. 'Taking that gangster costume of yours a bit far aren't we?' I joked, he was drunk off his face and it wasn't even 9:00 yet, 'Come Gabe let me go!' I pleaded, where on earth were the girls! They wouldn't just leave me here all by myself with Gabe the fuckwit! 'Problem Gabriel?' asked a couple of familiar voices. I shifted my gaze to see Quil, the girls and to my intense shock Jared all staring down Gabe. 'Nu-nu-nothing!' he stuttered releasing my arm and raising his hands in a gesture of surrender. I turned on Gabe sending him an angry icy glare of my own, 'You bastard!' I whispered furiously, kicking him in the groin. He dropped to the ground and curled into the foetal position, moaning in pain. I dusted my hands off and turned back to the others, 'Ok we're done here, let's go,' I said motioning towards the ajar doors; all of them were still looking at an incapacitated Gabe except for Jared who was staring at me again. 'What? Oh come on, don't tell me he didn't deserve that!' I retrieved my clutch from the ground and walked into the auditorium.

The auditorium looked...well there are no words in the English language to describe how much of a cliché the place looked like. Fake bats and spiders were hung from the walls, black and orange crepe paper was strewn from the ceiling and the odd jack – o – lantern placed haphazardly around the room. How old did the teachers think we were? Honestly I don't think this would scare my three year old cousin let alone a group of teenagers. I scanned the room, finding about 20 different trench coats scattered around. _Good they're all here!_ 'Hey check it out!' Eve whispered nodding in Gisele's direction. She was wearing a tight red top, red shorts, red pumps, a red forked tail, a trident and to complete the picture a pair of red devil's horns. 'How fitting,' I snickered, trying not to draw attention to myself, 'she's finally embraced what's truly inside!' I could see Eve trying to control her laughter, but failing miserably. 'Look, look, look!' I choked out, between giggles. I'd just spotted Simone and Margot and the both of them were dressed as bumble bees! The both of us cracked up again. Still laughing we hung onto each other making our way over to where the others stood; hiding behind one of the larger jack – o – lanterns.

'What happened?' Bek asked dryly, shooting nervous glances at Embry out the corner of her eye. I shook my head turning my attention to Quil and his...costume. 'A cowboy! Come on Quil, a native American cowboy!!' He hooked his thumbs in the loops of his jeans and puffed his chest out not that he needed to. 'That's Sheriff Quil Atera to you miss!' he drawled. I giggled, 'Oh my! I'm so sorry sir, I didn't mean to cause offense,' I joked immediately dropping into a southern belle accent. 'Well there's always a first for everything!' Jake laughed from under his Indian Chief headdress. I started laughing again, 'How Chief Jacob,' he shot me an annoyed glare and snorted. 'Where'd you find the outfit Jake?' Eve asked pulling an innocent face. 'Where'd you think? Dad's closet, he only wears on special occasions,' he stage whispered. I withdrew from the conversation and looked around for Jared, I spotted him skulking in the corner with Paul who looked as always annoyed. The minute my eyes touched his face, as if by some invisible signal he turned his dark burning gaze on me. I should have felt embarrassed or at least turned away when he caught me staring at him, but strangely enough I held his gaz. His mouth shifted into a lopsided grin and his eyes warmed slightly. I could feel something shift deep inside me as my cheeks began to burn.

'Kim,' Bek hissed, snapping her fingers in front of my face. I wanted to punch her for interrupting my silent conversation with Jared. 'It's time!' she said pointing to the huge clock that hung above the double doors. 'Ahh,' snapping into focus I clicked open my clutch checking the disc was still there, 'Girls, it's time!' I said repeating Bek's words. Eve and Deb nodded and snuck out the side door, while Bek weaved her way into the crowd, becoming lost from my sight. The boys looked slightly confused as I forged a path across the dance floor in the direction of the DJ. 'Hey! HEY!!' I yelled jumping up onto the stage, 'I need a favour,' I called to the very confused DJ who pulled off his headphones and shot me a curious look. 'Sure kid,' 'Play this!' I handed him the disc. 'You sure?' he asked looking dumfounded, I nodded. 'You wouldn't happen to have a spare mic?' he nodded foraging around for a moment before handing it to me. I hopped off the stage, this was it, this had to work, and it was do or die time. I flicked the mic on and removed my coat tossing it at the base of the speaker where I'd left my clutch. Ignoring the internal karate moves I took a deep calming breath as the music began to play and waited for my cue. I strode out towards the dance floor, head held high; a smirk stretched across my face. I needed to channel some Velma Kelly tonight. _Just breathe Kim_.

"_Come on babe, why don't we paint the town,"_ I sang my voice echoing off the walls, _"in all that Jazz. I'm gonna rogue my knees and roll my stockings down, in all that Jazz. Start the car I know a whoopee spot where the gin is cold but the piano's hot! It's just a noisy hall where there's a nightly brawl in that Jazz..."_ _"Hatcha, whoopee,"_ my smirk stretched into a grin as the girls appeared at the fringes of the crowd. The rest of my classmates watched as we formed a large circle framing the dance floor. I was in heaven as we danced our large circle growing slowly smaller but we still kept on dancing, _".....Oh I'm no one's wife, but Oh I love my life and...All....that....Jazz! That Jazz!" _Our audience began clapping and cheering, I was breathing heavily as were the girls. I exchanged glances with Bek and she was grinning just as widely. We had done it. After taking our bows and right on cue, the double doors swung open with a slam and there stood two very convincing police officers, 'Velma Kelly you are under arrest for the double murders of Veronica Kelly and Charlie Winkle,' Eve yelled in her best authoritive detective voice. The two of them marched towards me, Deb brandishing a very real looking gun at anyone who stood in their way.

They were a few feet from me when I bolted into the crowd, shoving my way past in an effort to put them between me and the 'law'. Next thing I know, I'm literally being swept off my feet and thrown over someone's shoulder in a fireman's lift. 'Put me down!' I yelled watching my wig flutter down and land on the floor and my wild curly hair tumble across my face. 'Thank you Sheriff, for your assistance,' Eve said once I was back on my feet and securely handcuffed. Deb had a hold of my wig and was jabbing the 'gun' into my back. 'No thanks needed Detective,' Quil drawled thoroughly pleased with himself. I threw him a withering look and he threw me a wink back and I couldn't help but smile. Deb and Eve proceed to drag me out of the auditorium to the cheers of the rest of the school. We passed Gisele and her drones on our way out and not even a scathing glare from her could wipe the smile from my face. I locked eyes with Jared for a brief moment and almost tripped over when Deb pushed me forward. 'You can tone it down a bit,' I muttered out of the corner of my mouth as we exited the hall. Bek was waiting outside with my things and proceeded to help Eve un-cuff me.

'OMG! That was amazing!!' I squealed jumping up and down. The other three started shrieking in delight as we congratulated ourselves on a job well done. Dumping our props in Bek's car we hurried back through the side door. 'Nice job Kim,' Quil congratulated me as we converged on the punch bowl. 'Did you get a look at Gisele's face?' I asked draining my drink and going for a refill. 'You should have seen her she was livid!' Deb laughed, I raised an eyebrow, 'I thought you were supposed to be outside, Sergeant!' Deb shrugged her shoulders. 'She's right though, Gisele was mad as a hornet,' Jake said, I nodded that sounded like her. Over the next half hour I kept shooting glances in Jared's direction only to find him staring at me. On my 10th glance Quil's gaze followed to where I was looking, 'He's starting to get on my nerves,' he muttered darkly. 'Quil don't!' I growled, throwing him a look that said 'calm down!' He ignored Jared for a bit, so I took that opportunity to go to the toilet. 'What's with Quil tonight,' Deb asked accosting me on my way back, 'I don't know, he's being weird about Jared,' I answered looking from him to Jared, who was still staring at me. Quil turned to greet me, but his face instantly hardened when he guessed who I was looking at.

Rolling up his sleeves, he marched over to Jared, 'Shit!' I hissed yanking off my stilettos before running to intercept him. 'Quil! Quil stop it!' I ordered, yanking on his arm but I may as well have been trying to move a mountain as I hung onto his arm. Jared saw us approaching taking in my worried expression and Quil's murderous one. 'Quil stop it! Stop it right now!' I commanded, planting myself in between him and Jared. 'Not until he leaves you alone!' Quil thundered. 'Hey!' I yelled as out of nowhere Jared swung me behind his back, almost protectively. I stumbled slightly as Paul reached out to steady me. 'You might not want to get involved,' he said stopping me from walking back around Jared.

'I am involved; I'm what they're fighting about!' Paul sighed, 'look you grab Jared and I'll get Quil,' I said peaceably, scooting around Jared before Paul could grab me again. 'Quil outside now!' I thundered pushing on his chest trying to get him to move. 'Not until he says he'll leave you alone!' I rolled my eyes he was being stubborn. 'No NOW!!" I shrieked, putting my hands on my hips. 'Come on Quil, outside,' Embry said appearing at Quil's shoulder and grabbing his elbow. Quil looked like he was about to complain when Jacob grabbed his other elbow and the three of us started forcing him out the side door. I turned to see if Paul needed any help with Jared only to find that they had vanished.

'What the HELL was that for?!" I yelled once we were outside, my voice cracking on the last word. Quil shook off the other two, 'WHAT! You should be asking him that not me!' Quil yelled back. 'Yes well I can take care of MYSELF thank you very much and I DON'T need you to fight my battles for me!' I shrieked, a touch of hysteria in my voice, the stress that I had been hiding from everyone beginning to bubble over. He snorted, getting very defensive, 'It's pathetic you know!' he jabbed his finger at me, 'this idiotic little crush you have on him!' 'What are you saying I'm not good enough for Jared?' I accused, my voice raising an octave. 'You came up with that one not me,' he said sarcastically, I let out low hiss. 'I can't talk to you when you're acting like this,' I said coldly turning on my heel and marching around the back of the building. When I was sure they wouldn't be able to hear me I slumped against the wall letting it take my weight. My eyes were burning as the tears of so many weeks of stress and fear let rip. I slid down the wall til I reached the concrete, tucking my knees against my chest. I sobbed content in the knowledge that no one would come looking for me......

**Ok heavy stuff in this chapter. Poor Kim....**


	9. Chapter 8: Apologies & Certain Truths

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Ok little disappointed reviews wise. Did no one like the last chapter? Cause I was having serious reservations about uploading this one....So PLEASE review. I don't want to turn into one of these writers who demands reviews in exchange for new chapters. Please tell me what you think cause believe it or not I like hearing what you guys think! PLEASE REVIEW! Junosphere**

Chapter 8 – Apologises & Certain Truths

'Kim?' a deep husky voice interrupted my private misery. I looked up through bleary tear filled eyes, barely discerning that the person standing in front of me was Jared. Ignoring him I tucked my head on top of my knees, hiding my fresh tears. I thought he'd eventually lose interest in the sobbing girl at his feet and move away. It wasn't until I felt his warm muscular arm snake around my shoulders that I'd realised he'd sat down or that'd I'd been shivering. 'You're freezing,' he remarked as he pulled me closer to his side. I complied by resting my head against his warm shoulder. I could hear Jared release a sigh; it spoke of relief and utter contentment. 'No you're just warm,' I countered looking sideways at him only to find him looking at me with nothing but sincere concern. 'I guess that's true,' he chuckled.

'Jared, I'm sorry about what Quil said earlier,' I apologised as another tear streaked down my cheek. 'He was out of line, he should have just let it go,' 'No Kim it was my fault, you shouldn't have to apologise for him, he was right and I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable,' he turned his head from me in what I thought was shame. So I did something that if my brain had been functioning properly wouldn't have allowed me to do. I took hold of his chin, a spark rippling up the length of my arm as I did, and turned his face back to mine. An ancient sadness was etched in deep lines on his face. 'Hey, Quil needs to back off! I can take care of myself just fine, can't have people thinking I'm some kind of damsel in distress!' I said the last part sarcastically and earned a wry smile for my efforts. 'After what I've seen you do tonight that's definitely true!' he remarked. I laughed under my breath remembering Gabe's face when I kicked him in the balls.

'Thanks for the vote of confidence! Because I'm going to have to kill Quil soon or at least make it so he won't be fathering anyone's children for a while,' I said, refining my plan. 'Why?' he asked, looking slightly confused. I sighed heavily, I didn't like going through this with Jared, especially since I could probably guess how he was going to react. 'He said some rather.... hurtful and horrible things to me after we got him outside,' I stiffened as his grip on my shoulders tightened and his face hardened. 'Is that what upset you before?' he asked in a hard voice, I nodded biting my lip as his expression became murderous. I tore my gaze from his face and looked up at the sky. It was unusually clear tonight and you could make out the moon and the stars. 'I should probably go,' I whispered finally, untangling myself from his arms. Realising what I wanted, Jared stood up rather gracefully for someone of his size pulling me with him. 'Can I take you home?' he asked sincerely, retaining his hold on both of my hands which looked very small in his. 'Alright,' I said slightly suspiciously. I extricated my hands from his feeling a little overwhelmed, and turned and walked around the building. I couldn't tell if he was following me so I stopped abruptly and turned around only to have him run into me a millisecond later. 'Kim! I'm so, so, sorry!' he apologised pulling me to my feet.

'Nah my fault I didn't know where you were,' I admitted blushing furiously at my stupidity. 'Wait here,' I said sternly rushing into the hall through the side door. 'Hi! What happened? Where are you going? And why do you look so flustered?' Bek asked quite enthusiastically as I took my things from her. Uh oh, she'd gotten into the red frogs again! 'Quil's an arse and Jared's taking me home,' I said hurriedly, throwing on my coat. Her eyes widened, 'Well bye,' she said as I scooted in the direction of the side door. 'Good luck!' she called her voice thick with implications. I practically sprinted out the side out the door hoping and praying that this wasn't his idea of a sick joke. I found him in the exact spot I'd left him. His eyes lit up in a similar way Dan and Isaac's did on Christmas morning. He led me out to his car and I could literally _feel_ his hand hovering around the small of my back. 'Your chariot awaits!' he said opening the door of his very large ute. I hopped in as gracefully as I could under the circumstances, earning myself another smile. The ride home felt very short despite the fact we spent the entire time sneaking glances at each other. He pulled into my driveway and parked under a tree. He got out and strode around to open my door, 'Thank you,' I said gratefully making the fatal mistake of looking into his eyes.

'Anytime Kim,' he said tucking a stray lock of hair behind my ear,' I shivered but not from the cold. 'Not just for the ride home but everything,' I said softly, he ducked his head, his cheeks turning slightly pink. I made Jared Thail blush! Now that's a first. So making it two things I would never do if my brain had been functioning. I stretched up on my toes and planted a small kiss on his cheek. 'Night,' I whispered scooting around him. I could feel my cheeks burning as I climbed up the porch, I just placed a hand on the door knob. 'Kim,' he whispered loudly rushing to stand at the foot of the porch. 'Yes?' 'Can I see you tomorrow?' I tilted my head and looked at him suspiciously; 'Sure,' I answered fighting to keep the scepticism out of my voice. His face lit up again. 'So...I'll come get you at one?' 'Ok, Night Jared,' 'Goodnight Kim,' I forced the door open and quickly scooted inside. Even with the door between us I could still feel his gaze burning into my back. Two thoughts rattled around my head as I tip toed through the sleeping house. I could hear the twin's collective snores as I silently climbed the stairs. Thought No. 1 – What the HELL was I thinking kissing Jared? Thought No. 2 – How the HELL did he know where I live?


	10. Chapter 9: Getting Caught

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Come on guys! What's happening, how come no one's reviewing!! Please I'm begging you! PLEASE Review!!! I like hearing what you guys have to say! Come on I'm very sick and I'm using my recovery time to get you guys a chapter! I know that's below that belt playing the "I'm sick" card to get you guys to review but PLEASE review!! Your very sick fan fic writer Junosphere**

Chapter 9 – Getting Caught

'You did WHAT!!' Bek screeched. I wrenched the phone away from my ear before she deafened me. I hadn't slept at all that night, after Jared dropped me home I paced around my room for an hour mulling over my two main concerns before collapsing in complete exhaustion at around one. Even then nightmares wreaked havoc with my already frail psyche; images of angry Quil yelling at me about Jared, he was shaking, violently so in a similar fashion to how Dan was when I was in hospital. I shook my head trying to rid myself of one of the many things I'd seen last night. 'Bek, BEK!!' I yelled interrupting her rant on _not_ _kissing_ _total_ _hot_ _strangers_. 'Oh no what else did you do?' she accused, her angry voice crackling and wavering over the connection. 'He........sought of asked if he could see me today,' I blurted. 'AND?' she asked impatiently, I could hear her tapping her foot on the floor of what I assumed was her kitchen floor. 'I.....sought of....said........yes,' I mumbled, crossing my fingers and praying like mad.

'AHHHH! You IDIOT!!' she screamed as I wrenched the phone away from my ear again. 'What on EARTH were you thinking!? No of course not because you weren't thinking WERE YOU!!' she ranted. I chewed on my bottom lip, maybe ringing Bek hadn't been such a good idea after all... 'Bek, sweetie can't you just....I don't...be happy for me?' I asked when she stopped to take a breath. 'I....Hmm! Oh well alright. I am happy for you; I'm just worried is all because this is Jared Thail we're talking about! He's not like Quil or Jake or Embry....' she trailed off. I stiffened at the mention of Quil. 'I'm not so sure you can class Quil in your _perfect_ gentlemen's list anymore,' I sniffed, blinking back the tears I could feel coming on. 'Uh oh what did he do?' she asked, switching into her 'mom' voice. One of the unwanted tears fell onto my cheek as I remembered all the things Quil said to me last night and everything he didn't say. I leaned my against the back of the couch and shut my eyes, feeling drained, 'he basically said that I was pathetic and my little crush as he put it was ridiculous.' 'Oh honey, he didn't say that did he? Oh hon,' Bek soothed, her voice still crackling away on the other end.

I took a quick look at the clock. Shit! It was twelve and I hadn't gotten dressed yet! 'Hey Bek I gotta go I'll talk to you later ok?' I didn't even wait for her to say goodbye and hung up. I got off the couch and grabbed an apple from the kitchen on my way to the staircase. I ate it as I trudged up the stairs to find a suitable outfit for my _date_ with Jared. I was halfway through my scrutiny of my bare closet when I realised Jared hadn't said where we were going. Damn! I was going to have to guess my way through this one. Frustrated I pulled my unruly curls into a high ponytail as I tried to figure out what I could do with my meagre supply of clothes. After 15 minutes of furrowed eyebrows and head scratching I settled on a pair of jeans, my sneakers and a tank top Sarah had given me for my birthday last year. I didn't have enough time to bother with any elaborate make up; _lip gloss would just have to do, _I thought to myself fighting off mental images of Deb and Eve taking turns beating me to death with a crowbar. I was stuffing my phone and house keys into my back pocket when the house phone starting ringing. I sprinted across the hall into mom and dad's room grabbing the receiver halfway through the third ring. 'Hello?' I phrased it like a question, crossing my fingers and praying it wasn't Jared.

'Alright bitch here's the thing, you may think you're very clever attracting Jared's attention with that little stunt you pulled last night but BACK OFF! Jared is MINE! And sooner or later he's going to realise exactly how pathetic you are and come crawling back to me. So how 'bout we make it sooner and have you stop encouraging him!' yelled a familiar furious voice, well as furious as a high pitched voice can sound. 'Gisele? What the fuck! How the hell did you get my home number?' I yelled back just as furiously, my left hand bawling into a fist. 'Never mind that!' she snapped, 'You just do exactly as I say or there will be consequences!' she spat before hanging up on me. I stared at the receiver for a minute before putting it back on the cradle. That girl was completely nuts; she was definitely missing a few screws. I wandered back into my room and started hunting for a decent coat. Twenty minutes later black knit coat in hand I walked back down the stairs to wait for Jared. I got to the foot of the stairs when there was a knock at the door.

'Please let that be him!' I prayed forcing myself to walk sedately to the door. 'Hi!' I said brightly, blinking several times to make sure he was still there, he seemed to perfect to be real. 'Hiya back,' he said chuckling softly at my enthusiasm. I gripped the door frame tightly to stop myself from passing out. I just couldn't believe it! Jared Thail was standing in my doorway of all places! 'You ready?' he asked shooting me a curious look. I nodded my head not trusting myself to speak. He smiled at me and I gulped really hard. God he looked so much more handsome when he smiled not that he wasn't handsome already. I shook my head as I pulled the door shut behind me and locked it. _Pull yourself together Kim!_ I mentally chastised myself as I followed him out to his ute which looked even bigger in the daytime. 'Sooooo,' I said, dragging out the word once we were out of my driveway and halfway down the road, 'where are we going?' I asked turning to look at him. 'It's a surprise,' he said, slowly turning red. I shot him a quizzical look. He couldn't be nervous? Could he? Nah.

'Can you give me a clue?' I asked, looking at him persuasively using the full force of my big green eyes. His own brown....no _mahogany_ eyes widened slightly and he groaned. 'Aww, come on Kim don't use those irresistible emerald eyes on me,' he moaned. I froze, he just said my eyes, my _emerald_ eyes were _irresistible_! Oh My God! 'Humph I'll find out soon enough,' I huffed not completely disguising the joy I felt from his compliment. I turned to look out the window as the forests surrounding La Push gave way to the pebble flecked First Beach. I frowned slightly, as I stared out the hypnotic aqua waves. My memories of the last time I'd been here weren't pleasant ones. 'Kim?' I jerked out of my memory; Jared was watching me intently, studying the emotions on my face like he was trying to commit them to memory or something. He'd definitely noticed the pain etched on my face, I quickly covered it with a smile that even he could tell was forced. I pushed the open the door of his ute not realising how heavy it was and ran around it to stand where the dirt became sand. It wasn't all that windy today, the sky was still clear and there was a rare bit of sunshine making the waves sparkle like gems. I closed my eyes letting the sun warm my face as I breathed in the tangy, salty sea air. One thing was for certain I may have had some less than pleasant memories of this place but I had many more good ones.

I turned around and realised that Jared was still sitting in the cab. 'Are you coming?' I called, cupping my hands around my mouth. I could clearly see the look of admiration on Jared's face and found it a bit disconcerting. We wandered up and down the beach exchanging stories from when we were kids. I liked the way he laughed when I told him about the time Isaac got himself stuck down the toilet. Don't ask me how he did it; all I know is that he wanted to see if he could flush himself out to sea. You can blame Finding Nemo for that one! I felt a thrill go through me when he listened intently when I talked about Gran or all the places I'd lived. 'You really lived in Toronto! I don't believe you,' he crowed, we were sitting one of the pale logs that had washed up on the beach in haphazard places, sharing fish and chips he'd bought from the kiosk. I felt bad for him to pay for my share but he said it was fine. 'Yeah I have, we were there for around a year, and from there we moved to Boston,' I said pausing to take a bite out of my fish.

'Why did you come back?' he asked getting that intense listener look on his face again. I chewed thoughtfully, I didn't know whether I should share the full story with him but I didn't want to lie to him either. 'I never really told anyone this but we were in New York at the time and we got a letter from the La Push council informing us that Gran had died, so we came back to put her affairs in order and that took us around two months and in the end we just didn't want to leave so Dad got transferred, Mom got a job at the dinner in Forks and we all got enrolled in school, and we've been here ever since,' I finished wiping away a few stray tears, I felt a little sad talking about Gran. She was an impressive woman, very strong, very independent and she was fiercely protective of her family. If I ended up with at least one tenth of her formidable character I'd be a very happy girl. 'Your Gran was Esther Morgan right?' he asked wrapping an arm around my shoulders, I nodded. 'I met her once or twice, she came to our house after Dad walked out, she was a pillar of strength for Mom and she was always cooking for us and man she could cook!' I looked up at his face; his eyes had glazed over slightly like he was remembering what Gran's brownies tasted like. 'That's a good way to describe her actually, _pillar of strength_,' I laughed at my own comment. I could just imagine Gran showing up at Jared's house with a plate of brownies or a bowl of stew, her green eyes full of nothing but fierce concern. Her green eyes, the same ones I had inherited.

'Holy SHIT!' I yelled, flinching out of Jared's grip, his face looked shocked as I fell off the log backwards my legs flailing in the air. He was HOT, no I didn't mean looks wise but I swear he was burning up. I managed to scramble back onto the log and I rested the back of my hand against his forehand. 'Jesus Christ!' I swore, 'You're burning up!' All of a sudden as if he couldn't hold it in anymore he started laughing, not little amused chuckles but enormous belly laughs. The kind that grew in capacity the more you tried to hold them in. 'This is so not funny Jared Thail,' I growled feeling like an idiot for over reacting. After a few minutes of listening to him laugh he managed to control himself, 'Sorry about that it's just well you should have seen yourself,' he chuckled, I could feel that wretched ruby blush crawling its way over my cheeks. 'Ugh,' I pouted turning away from him to stare out at the hypnotic aqua waves. He stopped chuckling, and out the corner of my eye I could see him lean forward to look at me, his expression a little sheepish, but his eyes sparkling with mirth, I couldn't help but crack a smile, he grinned too, 'There I thought so,' he said and I turned and glared at him. He ducked his head, 'sorry I promise I'll be on my best behaviour now,' his eyes pleading me to forgive him.

I smiled, wrapping my arms around my knees and pulling them under my chin. I looked over at him slyly; I could see the panic taking hold in his eyes, 'What?' he asked, panic creeping into his voice. 'It's my turn now,' I said dropping my voice dramatically; he cocked his head looking confused. I leant towards him, fixing my gaze on him in a similar fashion to a lioness stalking her prey. He had the prudence to lean back and look scared, 'You've been questioning me all day and now it's my turn,' I said, slightly threateningly, he gulped and continued to lean away from my. A sly smile crept across my face, 'what are you gonna do to me,' his voice shook a little. 'Oh nothing really,' I said nonchalantly, 'just this!' I pushed him hard in the centre of his massive chest, he was leaning so far back that he fell off the log. What I wasn't counting on was having him grab my arm and pull me with him.

'Oh bugger!' I said hiding my face in his massive chest, 'Damn it I'd thought I had you there for a minute,' I could feel his chest shaking underneath me and I looked up to see him laughing again. I took a quick look at our surroundings only to realise we were in a bit of a compromising situation, I couldn't help it and started laughing myself. 'That was a good plan,' he said once we stopped laughing, he looked at me through his eyelashes, 'you actually looked quite dangerous for a minute,' I shrugged my shoulders. 'Well obviously not dangerous enough, since you saw right through it,' I chuckled poking him in the chest. I could hear a wet crunching noise that sounded like two sets of feet walking towards us, 'Well well what do we have here,' said an unfamiliar voice that sounded like it was used to being obeyed. I felt Jared freeze underneath me. _Oh shit!_

**Ooooh who do think it is?**


	11. Chapter 10: Your Not What I Expected

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Sorry I've taken so long to update. I absolutely HATE writer's block. Anyway let me know what you think, Junosphere**

Chapter 10 – You're Not What I Expected

'Hello Sam, Paul,' Jared said rather grudgingly. Remembering where I was, I quickly rolled off of Jared and sat in the damp sand next to him. 'What do you want Sam?' Jared asked pulling himself off the sand, blocking me from the view of the others. Sam peered round Jared's large frame at where I was sitting. 'You must be Kim,' he said in a matter – o – fact voice, ignoring Jared's question. I quickly scrambled off the sand into a standing position. 'Yeah, hi it's nice to meet you,' I said looking at Jared out the corner of my eye. I could see he was getting really annoyed and was shooting death glares at the other two. I shook Sam's hand, which looked equally as big as Jared's and just as warm. 'It's nice to finally put a face to the name, Jared talks about you quite a bit,' I could detect a hint of amusement in his voice. I turned and looked at Jared enquiringly, raising an eyebrow. 'Does he now?' I asked, watching as Jared turned red, his expression murderous. 'What do you want Sam?' he asked again through gritted teeth. 'Council meeting tonight, usual time and place,' he said turning his attention towards Jared. He looked a little confused but nonetheless nodded. Sam nudged Paul's shoulder and the two of them took off into the forest. 'What do you think the council meeting will be about?' I asked, Jared's head snapped around to look at me. 'Probably just the usual stuff,' he said vaguely. His eyes combed my face, as if he was searching for the answer to an unasked question. 'I've never noticed that you had a scar before,' he said softly.

My hand flew up to the small pale scar that I would always have as a reminder of my stupidity. 'It's a good story,' I said rather bashfully. 'From the looks of it I'm guessing you haven't had it very long,' he said peering at my face. 'How'd you get it?' he asked. I sat back down and patted the spot on the log next to me. 'I'm surprised no one's mentioned it to you actually,' I remarked as took the spot next to me. He frowned slightly but urged me to continue. 'Well it happened after dance class a few weeks ago, I was walking home through my shortcut in the forest, it was just starting to get dark. I was walking for around 10 mins when I felt like something or someone was watching me,' I shuddered slightly, I could feel waves of anxiety rolling off of Jared but I kept going. 'Anyway I ignored it and kept going and came across this enormous, bear – sized wolf sitting about 5m from where I was standing on the track. To cut a long story short I panicked and sprinted away as fast as I could. Anyway me being the idiot that I am tripped over a bunch of tree roots; cutting open my forehead and knees, nevertheless I just got back up and kept running until I reached the house.' I furrowed my eyebrows trying to remember, 'It gets fuzzy after that I think I must have passed out or something,' I finished.

I turned just in time to see Jared go rigid in his seat. His hands clenched into fists and he was shaking.........the same way Dan had at the hospital.........the same way Paul had in Biology class.........the same way Quil had last night. 'Jared, Jared!' I called becoming alarmed, 'Jared look at me!' I said placing a hand on his arm. He instantly calmed under my touch, his arms relaxed and I watched as he stared at my hand resting on his arm, like my hand was the only thing keeping him sane. I waited till he'd taken enough deep breaths for my liking before I removed my hand. 'Feeling better?' I asked, teasing him slightly. 'I overreacted, didn't I?' he said sheepishly, I laughed. 'You weren't the worst, Dan chucked a fit in the hospital all because I'd gotten out of bed, I honestly thought he was gonna spontaneously combust or something,' I said shaking my head. Jared frowned again, 'Which one's Dan?' he asked his face hardened and his eyes became serious. 'Dan's the one who broke his wrist falling off a ski lift when we lived in Toronto,' I prompted, he smiled remembering the story I'd told earlier, but the smile didn't reach his eyes they stayed serious and somewhat sad. I shook my head, 'come on!' I said jumping up off the log; he looked at me, confused. 'Come _on_,' I said holding out my hand to him, 'you need to stop moping, you've been in a weird mood since Sam left, smile?' I pleaded, making puppy eyes at him. He broke out into a real grin and took my hand. We gathered the remains of our lunch and wandered down the beach, exchanging more stories from when we were younger. I told him of the few memories I had of La Push before my family left.

We were approaching the rock pools, letting go of his hand I skipped over and vaulted onto one of the larger flat rocks. I sat on my haunches and peered into the depths of the pools. 'How did you do that?' he asked, puffing slightly as he forged his own path onto the rock. 'Do what?' 'Vault up here like that. I've never seen anything like that before.' I could hear the awe in his voice. I shrugged, 'It's nothing really, before I started dancing I did gymnastics for a while, that's all' I said nonchalantly, he was shaking his head a wry smile stretched across his face. 'What? What!?' I asked. 'Nothing,' he said smiling sheepishly. I returned my attention to the rock pool, observing the abundance of life, going about their business in just a few feet of sea water. The wind started to pick up as we sat there in comfortable silence, so it came as a surprise when it dumped an enormous wave on top of us.

'AHH!' I shrieked at the sudden coldness, I was completely drenched from head to toe, salt water oozing out of my sneakers, my ponytail sticking to the back of my neck. I turned and saw that Jared was equally as drenched as I was, water dripping off his very short hair, down the back of his neck, disappearing into his t-shirt. Which I couldn't help but notice was clinging to his body in all the right places, leaving absolutely nothing to the imagination. I leaned back against the rock and thought about the irregular verbs I needed to translate for homework, concentrating on those instead of the irregular thoughts I was having about Jared in his wet t-shirt. 'Ugh,' I slapped my hand to my forehead, trying to force them out. 'Kim?' Jared pulled my hand away from my face, his eyes full of worry, water dripping off his nose, hair plastered to his forehead.

I couldn't help it I started giggling, the giggles turning into full on laughter; Jared shot me a quizzical look before bursting into laughter himself. I don't know how long we sat there; it could have been an eternity for all I know but it felt good to laugh. 'Wow, what a day!' I said wiping away some tears of laughter. I looked out at the ocean only to see that the sun was lower in the sky then it was a minute ago. 'Wow! It's getting late!' I remarked, making squelching noises as I moved. 'Oops!' I said shaking water onto Jared; he threw me a withering look before standing up and shaking himself in a similar fashion to wet dog, showering me with sea water. 'Ah!!' I shrieked throwing my arms up in front of my face, failing to protect myself from the onslaught. I looked back at Jared, noticing he was almost completely dry and grinning his silly head off. 'Hey no fair!' I pouted folding my arms across my chest. Jared had the good sense to look morose, his eyes pleading forgiveness. I rolled my eyes and sighed dramatically, 'you're forgiven,' I amended. He instantly started grinning again; I shook my head and shimmied closer to the edge of the rock pool. Knowing I had to act fast. I scooped up a handful of water and threw it at Jared. I quickly jumped off the rock and ran back down the beach.

'Catch me if you can!' I called in a sing song voice, turning to see a shocked Jared leap gracefully off the rock. 'Oh shit!' I whispered, sprinting back down the beach in the direction of his ute, my giggles and his chuckles ringing through the air. His ute was in sight, gleaming in the afternoon sun, when I realised I couldn't hear the pounding of footsteps behind me. I slowed just a little straining my ears to second a second set of footsteps when Jared grabbed me around the waist and in one swift movement threw me over his shoulder. 'Caught you!' he said matching my sing song tone. 'Ufff!' I huffed, the breath knocked out of me. He carried me like weighed no more than I feather back up to his ute, plonking me in the passenger's seat. He strolled around the back of the ute, whistling as he went, while I sat there dripping salt water all over his front seat. He climbed in the driver's side and handed me a towel. 'Thanks,' I said gratefully as he started the engine and turned the heater up full blast. The drive back to my place was very quiet, what with him concentrating on the road and me trying to rescue his seat from salt damage.

'Thanks I had a great time today,' I said when pulled up in my driveway. He turned and gave me a genuine smile that literally made my bones melt. 'I had great time too,' he chuckled. 'Do you want to come in?' I asked, putting the manners mom beat into me into practice. He sighed, 'I love to Kim but I better head off,' he said vaguely. 'Oh,' I could feel my face fall as I hopped out the ute, 'You know you're not what I expected,' I said sincerely, trying to phrase it like a compliment. He cocked his head examining me with those deep dark eyes, I felt oddly exposed, 'Funny you weren't what I expected either,' he countered. I smiled closing the door and climbing up the porch to the house. As I closed the front door, I could just make out the eerily close howl of a wolf. I shuddered...


	12. Chapter 11: I Don't Deserve Him

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Ok...BIG chapter this one, a lot happening. Still fighting writer's block and hating it!! Please bear with me, you have no idea how grateful I am for your endless patience with me AND yes I am aware that I'm uploading this at a RIDICULOUS hour (around 1:30) but I've got a lot on my mind at the moment despite the fact I'm on holidays. Luv Juno**

**PS. Haven't done this for a while.......I don't own Twilight all credit goes to the divine Ms Meyer for letting the rest of us mere mortals loose with her creation!!**

Chapter 11 – I Don't Deserve Him

'Bye Mom, bye guys!' I yelled flying down the stairs. Grabbing my bag, I slammed straight into Isaac, the both of us landing in a heap on the floor. 'Isaac what are you doing!' I exclaimed wriggling around trying to disentangle myself. 'Ow! Watch it!' I hissed thinking of the purple bruise forming on my shins. 'Ow Kim stop kicking me!' Isaac roared, shoving me with his elbow. 'Hey Mom, where's my...OI!" Dan yelled tripping and landing on top of Isaac and I. 'OW!! Would you two idiots get off of ME!!' I yelled dragging myself out from under my two gormless twin brothers. 'What on EARTH are you three screaming about now?' Mom remarked, wandering out of the kitchen brandishing a wooden spoon like a wand. I rolled my eyes and returned to tugging my bag out from under the twins who had started a wrestling match on the floor. 'Hey, hey, HEY! Stop that! You're gonna break something!' Mom yelled, stepping over me to bash the both of them over the head. 'Ow Mom!!' they complained, throwing each other matching rueful glances.

'Yeesh! Would you two dunderheads get off my bag already?' I asked, my voice laced with annoyance I may as well have been talking to a brick wall for all the good it did. I kept tugging but my bag refused to budge. 'Oh sorry sis,' Dan said hurriedly, jumping up off the floor, causing my bag to fly up, knocking me square in the chest. 'Oww! Thanks,' I said sarcastically from beneath the crushing weight of my bag. 'I think I bruised my ribcage,' I complained pushing the damn thing off me. I shook my head trying to clear my vision, I peeked a look at the clock, Shit! Jared would be waiting for me. Getting up slowly, I swung my bag onto my shoulders and left.

Walking up the driveway I thought about our strange little arrangement. It has been 2 weeks since my _non_ _date_ with Jared – Deb's word not mine! – and things at school were getting odder. I still wasn't speaking to Quil and word had spread about our altercation at the dance. Maths was awkward with him shooting me apologetic glances; I could feel him burning a hole in the side of my face. Even odder was that Embry hasn't showed up at school, according to Eve, our little gossip monger, no one has seen him since the night of the dance. Bek was becoming more and more frantic as the days passed and I was just beginning to realise the depth of her feelings for him. It was quite cute in a way. My relationship with Gisele had gotten worse, she was constantly throwing me death glares every chance she could get. She also continued to threaten me over the phone as well, but her threats were hollow so I never mentioned it to Jared or my parents. My relationship with that gorgeous, 6'4, hunk of pure sexiness and muscle on the other hand was becoming stronger.

He no longer stalked me from a far but was brave enough to walk through the corridors by my side. The fact that 9 times out of 10 he was holding my hand was enough to get the gossip mill rolling, but I knew where I stood with Jared and we knew that we were just friends. But sometimes I couldn't help wondering if we could be more...it was times like these I told myself to be grateful that he was even my friend and just leave it at that. So I didn't let the Chinese whispers bother me. I smiled at the memory of when he showed up at my house that first Monday after our non date. I swear my chin literally hit the floor in shock. So every day for the past two weeks, Jared would wait at the end of my driveway and we would go to school together. And it seemed today would be no different for there he was at the end of my driveway, leaning lazily against the passenger door of his ute. I shook my head and huffed out a sigh. He was perfect; I could not see any reason for him to be standing in my driveway, I certainly wasn't anything special.

Jared looked at the up at the sound of my approach, his face splitting into a blinding smile. I returned it as best I could, trying to squash the feelings of inadequacy. 'Morning sunshine!' he remarked as I jumped up to hug him. With his arms encircling my waist, I found it hard to remember my reasons for being content with just being his friend. 'You're awfully chipper this early in the morning!' I countered, raising an eyebrow lazily. He shrugged and continued grinning. 'Seeing you always makes my day Kim!' he said honestly, I blushed scarlet his comment. Helping me into the cab, we took off down the road to school.

'How was Maths?' Jared asked, I was getting used to his silent approaches, I swear that boy just popped out of nowhere. I grimaced, 'Awkward, but then again its becoming a common occurrence,' I said stashing my books. 'Kim? Kim!' called a voice, one I hadn't spoken to in weeks. I rolled my eyes at Jared and turned to face Quil, who sprinting down the hall towards me. 'Kim we need to talk,' he said, looking over my shoulder fixing Jared with a glare. 'Privately!' he spat. Out the corner of my eye I saw Jared bare his teeth, a low growl rippling out of his chest. I looked at him in shock where did that come from? And since when does Jared growl? I turned back to Quil and nodded, 'Sure,' I said peaceably, I laid a hand on Jared's arm. 'It's ok Jared, I'll be fine,' I promised before following Quil out the side door.

'What do you want Quil?' I asked, folding my arms across my chest. 'I just want to say sorry about the other night, I'm sorry I hurt your feelings,' he said bashfully. I cleared my throat and looked away, I'd known Quil a long time he'd been my friend even before we left La Push, I adored him, it was like having a brother; annoying and overprotective at times but always on my side. He hadn't been acting very brotherly the last few weeks though. 'That's ok Quil, I...uh accept your apology,' I said warily for I had noticed that Quil wasn't finished. I sighed, 'Oh go on Quil spit it out!' I said tiredly. _God! What more could he want!_ He looked around, eyes narrowed and glared at whoever he had spotted standing behind me. I knew it was Jared, I could feel the waves of anxiety rolling off him. 'Come on!' Quil grabbed my arm and dragged me further away from Jared's ever present gaze; closer to the edge of the forest.

'For God's sake Quil! What is it?' I exclaimed, panic creeping into my voice. We had attracted quite an audience, I spotted Eve talking to Jacob the both of them wore similar confused expressions. I shrugged my shoulders at them. 'You need to stop talking to Jared, Kim,' he whispered furiously. I sighed, was he really going to bring that up again! 'Quil! You just ruined your apology...' I started, he cut me off. 'Let me finish! You have to understand! He's dangerous! There's something seriously wrong with him!' I narrowed my eyes at him, 'Funny that, 'cause the only person I see who has something seriously wrong with him is YOU!' I said icily, he stood and blinked at me. I shook my head and turned to leave. 'NO! Kim you have to stay away from him! PLEASE!' he roared, swinging me back to face him; the pressure on my arm increasing tenfold. 'Quil let go,' I whispered, biting down on my lip to stop a whimper from escaping. 'NO Kim not until you promise to stay away from HIM!' Quil thundered, shaking me vigorously. 'Quil...let...me...GO!' I yelled swinging my free arm around to slap him across the face, the sound echoing off the trees.

Suddenly a pair of warm strong arms grabbed me around the waist, wrenching me out of Quil's grip. I stumbled and fell over at the sudden change in position. I heard a feral snarl, a noise that didn't sound human – I was told later that the noise came from Quil – and a deep, rumbling growl, then a snap and a crunch which was Jared's fist connecting with Quil's nose and the side of his face. 'Oh My God! Kim, Kim are you alright?' Eve called, rushing to help me up. I got a good look around, Jacob was struggling to hold a bleeding Quil back, and Paul was sitting on top of Jared. I think the phrase _if_ _looks_ _could_ _kill_ would apply to this situation. I've never seen Jared look so murderous. 'What happened here?!' yelled Mrs Lane, carving a path through the crowd of students watching the fight. I spotted Deb and Bek on the fringes of the crowd, Bek was paler than I'd ever seen her and Deb looked like she was gonna chew her lip off. 'What! You've all suddenly lost the ability to use your vocal chords!' Mrs Lane looked between the six of us for an explanation. Quil and Jared were having a staring contest, paying no attention to the rest of us. Paul was glaring at Quil, trying and failing to burn a hole in the boy's face. Jake and Eve looked at me for answers, but again I just shrugged my shoulders; I didn't understand it much myself.

Mrs Lane sighed, 'Fine, Mr Atera and Mr Thail the both of you are staying after school for detention. Mr Black kindly escort Mr Atera to the nurse's office. Mr Munez **(I'm sorry I don't know Paul's last name!)** would you please get off Mr Thail and Miss Morgan come with me please,' she ordered looking at me pointedly, I extricated myself from Eve's grip and followed her back to the school building. I passed Jared on my way, we made eye contact and I mouthed 'sorry' at him before disappearing through the side door.

By the time I'd gotten out of Mrs Lane's office everyone was back in class. She had me go through everything; Jared's fight with Quil, my argument with Quil, even the fight I'd had with Quil two weeks ago. I felt so guilty, my problems were my own and I'd gone and dragged Jared into them and now he had detention over it. If anyone should be getting punished it should be me. 'Ugh I'm a horrible person,' I whispered to no one in particular. 'That you certainly are!' said a snide, high pitched voice. 'What do you want Gisele?' I asked grudgingly, sticking my head into my locker. Big mistake. She slammed my locker door shut on my head, the catch digging into my scalp. I struck out blindly with my fist, satisfied when I made contact with her face. She let go of the door and I wrenched myself free. 'Bitch,' I spat, spraying blood on the floor, I'd bitten the inside of my mouth and I was fairly sure I had a bruise forming on the back of my head in addition to the one that curled its way my arm. Gisele was standing in the middle of the corridor, fists clenched, snarling like a feral cat. She had a red mark on the left side of her face where I'd struck her; she was going to have a gorgeous black eye. She screamed lunging at me her hands shaped into claws, reaching for my face. I dodged her attack, going through a quick run through of all the self defence tips I'd picked up from all my years in the public school system. I side stepped another of her jealously induced attacks, grabbing her by her bleached blonde hair extensions and throwing her into the lockers. I winced at the sound made as she bounced off them. I looked down at the pieces of her fake hair that I'd ripped from her head, throwing them on the floor in disgust.

All of a sudden she leapt off the floor managing to catch me off guard and knocking me over. Stunned as I was I did manage to roll away from her as she tried to execute a demented wrestling move. 'Miss Dubois stop what you are doing this instant!' yelled Mr Keane, the vice principal and my Art teacher. I sighed in relief, finally it was over. I sat up, ignoring the pain in my head as the adrenaline left my body. Gisele was arguing with Mr Keane and Mrs Lane, who I hadn't noticed arrive. 'Oh thank god she's conscious!' Mr Keane said, as an ambulance officer crouched next to me and started asking me all these questions. 'What, what, what?' I exclaimed, my annoyance at the ambulance officer showing through. 'I'm fine honestly; you don't need to shine that thing in my face,' I said, pushing his little flashlight away. He chuckled under his breath, 'Stubborn little thing aren't you, but I'll be the judge of that,' he continued to shine the damn thing in my face. When I looked around again, Mr Keane and Gisele were gone and Mrs Lane was ushering students back into their classrooms. 'Kim, Kimberly?' Mrs Lane asked as I struggled to get to my feet. Boy did my head hurt!

'Kim, Gisele has accused you of some pretty outlandish things; from stealing her boyfriend to sending her death threats,' I sniggered despite the fact I didn't find any of it funny. 'Honestly Mrs Lane she's got it the other way 'round,' I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and played her a few of Gisele's recent threats. Gisele's voice crackled through the mic; damn I'd landed on my phone when she knocked me over!

'_Listen here you fucking bitch!! If you don't stay away from Jared I know a lot of people with low enough standards who wouldn't mind fucking with an insignificant, little whore like you!! So you better start sleeping with one eye open if you know what's good for you..........................................................................'_

Mrs Lane gasped as I shut my phone, then reshaped her face into a neutral expression, 'Well this does change things doesn't it?' she mused, I just remained silent I wonder how quickly this piece of news will spread? '....I'll have to discuss this with Connor(Keane) but you and Gisele are internally suspended til after the detention hour this afternoon, your parents will be notified about what's happened but until further notice you are suspended from school grounds and activities,' she finished, fixing me with a hard stare. My mouth dropped, I'd had detentions before and caused my fair share of trouble, but suspended!! 'But...Haba....Eeba....Hmmmm......' what on earth was wrong with me! Anger and shock must be making me incapable of normal speech. I shut my mouth; there was no need for me to make an even bigger fool of myself or have her need to ring the ambulance again!

I followed her down the corridor past classrooms full of gossips who were laughably called my classmates. She continued to wind through a maze of halls until we hit the back doors, I followed her out across the quadrangle, past the oval until we reached a small group of people, huddled around the tech shed. I recognised Mr Keane and the groundsman Jim before I realised this was the detention kids. Gisele, Quil and Jared were there along with the 'regulars'. If you had detention more than twice a week for an extended period of time you were considered a 'regular'. I quickly took a spot in line next to a kid with enormous glasses who I recognised from Music, a spot which just happened to be the furthest away from the three people I did not want to see right now. Gisele looked a little dishevelled, what with ripped clothing, an uneven hair cut and a beautiful purple and blue black eye. She looked like she wanted to rip my eyes out, but I guess she'd had enough humiliation for one day. Quil was a mess, his nose was swollen, he had a fat lip, a large bruise was spreading under his eyes making him look like he hadn't slept in a while, plus a red mark on the right side of his face. I guess I must have slapped him harder than I first thought.

Jared.....ah Jared. Jared hurt to look at, it wasn't like he was injured or anything, in fact he looked perfect not a hair out of place. Especially since Quil looked like he'd just lost a fight with the Incredible Hulk. But regardless there was a small pain, centred around my heart that got more intense the longer I looked at him. I sighed and returned my attention to the task at hand. We got split into groups and assigned a certain part of the school to clean up. Ironically enough Jared ended up in the same group as me. Splitting off we headed to the front of the school to hunt for nonexistent pieces of rubbish. For the first few minutes Jared and I ignored each other, maybe he sensed that I didn't have anything to say or maybe I sensed that he didn't know what to say. Mr Keane and Mrs Lane took turns watching my group and Gisele and Quil's groups so talking wasn't permitted. As time went by Jared kept moving closer to where I was working when the teachers weren't looking. By the time I'd given into my slowing increasing curiosity Mr Keane had wandered off to go deal with Gisele who had decided that now would be the perfect time to throw a tantrum.

'Hey I really need to talk to you,' I hissed out the corner of my mouth. In my peripheral vision I saw him smile. He chuckled, a warm sound that made my insides go all funny, 'Good because I really need to talk to you too,' he whispered back. For some reason I wanted to throw my head back and laugh, but instead I settled for a little quiet snigger. I stopped working for a minute so I could just stand there and admire him, he had his back to me so I could watch him without him catching me. I drank in the sight of his broad, powerful shoulders, the rippling muscles, the perfect curve of his back, that tight.....uh *sigh*. I had to stifle a moan, can't let him catch me checking him out, what would that do to our friendship? I took a quick peek at him again before I got back to work. He was a perfect gentleman, he'd defended me today from Quil and had gotten in shit for it. So now he was serving detention for a stupid mistake I'd made. I sighed and returned to work, I honestly didn't deserve him...

**PLEASE REVIEW!! One more review and I'll have 20!! So PLEASE review and tell me what you think!!!**


	13. Chapter 12: Colours of the Forest

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Yay 3 reviews that's broken my record of reviews on one chapter! Yay thank you! Ok a bit of a change for this chapter we're going to take a look inside Jared's head, see what he thinks of what's happened so far. So PLEASE review and let me know what you think!! Luv Juno **

Chapter 12 – Colours of the Forest

'_Well it's about time!' 'Hello dickhead!' 'You really shouldn't have punched him,' 'Jared's a wolf too?'_ their thoughts hit me like bricks the minute I phased. I bristled at their comments, punching Quil was a necessity, he was hurting Kim, **my** Kim. _**'Can it guys, why are you late?'**_ Sam's voice echoed with the command of the Alpha and the others fell silent. Through the others thoughts I could see where they were all gathered, pushing myself harder I picked up speed as the forest became a blur of browns, greys and greens. These greens of the forest were a comfort though they were not the greens that I wanted. Her greens were brighter, sharper like an emerald lit up from behind especially when I caught them looking in my direction. How was it that a green like that could manage to be sharp and intense and also soft all at the same time? _'Ugh I think I'm be sick!'_ Embry teased, before falling silent again as Sam glared at him in his wolf form. I burst into the clearing to find four wolves instead of three; the new wolf was russet brown in colour and a hell of a lot bigger than me, almost as big as Sam. He was cumbersome, unused to his new form. I dipped my head in greeting. _'Sorry, I had a few things to deal with at school,'_ my thoughts were sheepish. Paul snorted, shooting boogers across the clearing and hitting the tree next to me, _'Yeah because detention is just so interesting these days,'_ he thought sarcastically. I growled and lunged at him, Paul met me halfway snapping at my neck with his jaws. I managed to shove him backwards causing him to trip over a fallen log. _'Jared cool it, Paul you will not tease him about his imprint; she could have been in real danger today and we don't need history to repeat itself.'_ Our thoughts turned sombre at the implied mention of Emily, we all knew the consequences of losing control even just for a second and none of us wanted to put those we cared about most in danger.

'_What's going on?'_ I asked breaking the tension; the atmosphere changed instantly becoming charged and edgy. I could sense Paul and Embry's frenzied excitement and Jacob's nerves which all meant one thing. _'There's vampires in the area,'_ Sam announced Embry started swaying; if he'd been human I'm fairly sure he'd be bouncing on his heels right about now. _'Where?'_ I asked, shifting straight into protector mode. _'Embry picked up the scent about an hour ago, there's two of them; a black haired male and a red haired female who we are assuming is his mate, they're headed to Forks,'_ Sam answered, Embry looked like he was gonna break into a touchdown dance, if that was physically possible. _'Wonder what's so important there?'_ I mused; there was nothing of interest in Forks, especially since the 'vegetarian' leeches had moved on. Paul whined, '_Who cares what they're here for! Let's GO already! There's five of us now, two leeches aren't going to put up much of a fight!'_ Sam growled at him, _'Not now Paul! We need to find out why they're here and Jacob is inexperienced and would be a liability in a fight,'_ Jacob ducked his head in embarrassment.

'_So what happens now?' _Jacob asked, showing off his greenhorn roots. _'Well there's not much we can do at the moment til we find out what it is they want but regardless we are stepping up on patrols, Jared since you've gotten yourself suspended you'll be running double shifts with Jake.'_ I groaned. Yay babysitting duty! _'Hey!'_ Jake growled at my train of thought. Sam would be running first patrol with Jake then I'd swap over at midnight. _'Sam?'_ I asked as the others dissipated into their own activities and eventually faded out. I really needed some advice so I showed him what had happened at school today. My vision was tinted red as I zeroed in on Quil's grip on Kim's arm. Sam chuckled briefly as I replayed Kim slapping him across the face.

'_Well Jared all I can say is tread carefully with this one, she can certainly handle herself and don't forget she's a Morgan.'_ I cocked my head, confused. _ 'What's that supposed to mean?'_ I asked. _'All I'm saying is she's Esther Morgan's granddaughter, she may know more about us than she's letting on,'_ I thought about it for a minute, Esther had been one of the elders on the council and she knew a lot about us and the phenomenon of imprinting, maybe even more than the current elders put together... _'Makes sense, I think she's getting suspicious plus she's got brothers,'_ I added, now it was Sam's turn to look confused. _'Her younger brothers Daniel and Isaac they're only about 12 but...'_ I trailed off. _'I'll look into it and I'll ask the Elders as well, it's been a while since a Morgan has become a wolf so we don't know what will happen.'_ I let go of the breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding in, I nodded my head in thanks and took off. I didn't quite know where I was headed but I knew I'd probably end up at Kim's house.

'_Does she know about Esther's will?'_ he asked. I balked, I hadn't thought about that one. _'I don't know. Why? Is it important?'_ I could feel Jacob's curiosity as he stalked past the old treaty line, despite the fact they'd been gone for a while anything past there still reeks of their sickly, sweet bleach like scent. _'Well let's just say she's more important than she realises,'_ Sam said cryptically dragging me out of what Jacob was seeing. '_Oh alright_,' that conversation left me even more confused. Do I tell her? Does she already know? Does she know more about this than I do? I didn't realise I'd reached her house til I was standing in her backyard. The sun had set a few hours ago so the forest had shades of blue and purple mixed in with all the usual colours. There was a light on in the back room on the second story of the house, staying within in the shadows, I crept closer my paws making no sound on the grass. It wasn't until I was standing in the middle of the backyard that I realised I was staring into Kim's room.

'Mom I'm fine, it just looks worse than it actually is,' I could see Kim's figure breeze past the window; I could just hear a mumbled reply. The light flicked off and I could hear Kim making a thumping noise, maybe she'd tripped over something? 'Mom! I don't need to go to the hospital! No Mom I'm fine I promise!' Kim's voice faded as she walked down the stairs. The argument with her mom still continued. I smiled a wolfy grin, my Kim, my little warrior, she was a stubborn little thing something that wasn't going to change and to be honest I really didn't want her to. Suddenly over in the distance, I heard Sam howl. I growled and reluctantly left my post under Kim's window. I promised myself I would be back later, and no vampire was going to get in my way.

It was around 6 in the morning when I crept into Kim's backyard in my human form. The sun was just rising; sending different shades of pink and purple across the lawn. I looked down at the piece of paper and a surprise for Kim that I held in my hand. Slipping silently across the lawn I made it over to the trellis, right next to Kim's window. I shook it gently, testing its strength only to have part of it come off in my hand, 'Shit!' I swore, dropping the plank of wood at my feet. Hoping the rest of it was a little bit stronger I quickly scaled it and slipped the note and the surprise in between the window sill and the frame. I jumped off the top of the frame, landing on the balls of my feet hoping to muffle the sound. I took one last look at the window where Kim lay asleep. It was getting harder and harder to just be her friend, I felt too much for her and what I felt was getting stronger every day. She was special, more special than she realised and one day I was going to prove it too. With this silent promise in the forefront of my mind, I slipped silently back into the forest.


	14. Chapter 13: Am I Missing Something

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Back to Kim's p.o.v this chapter! I'm guessing that since only one person reviewed that most of you didn't like the Jared p.o.v chapter but I'm fairly sure I've gotten rid of the writer's block for now. Ok heavy stuff in this chapter, but I've put a little family banter in there so you guys can see how Kim relates to her family. Anyway enjoy!! AND please review!! Luv Junosphere **

**Oh and I'm not Ms S. Meyer, I'm just borrowing her characters. **

Chapter 13 – Am I Missing Something

I woke up the next day to the sounds of my brothers arguing, something about a shoe? I moaned and rolled over, realising that I was still suspended from school. As the noise downstairs got louder, I groaned and got out of bed knowing that returning to sleep would be impossible. I stretched and rubbed my eyes as I looked over at the window and noticed something bright red fluttering around under the pane. My curiosity got the better of me and I went to investigate. Sliding the window open I discovered a folded slip of paper and to my intense surprise a rose, a red rose. Not like the tall, long stemmed variety that are really expensive and commonly found in florists. No this red rose was real, like the kind found in small cottage gardens, the kind that possessed a gorgeous smell, like the kind Gran used to grow. I lifted the rose to my face and inhaled its heavenly scent. Yup, definitely one of Gran's roses. There was a crash downstairs, I sighed and slid the window shut again. I wandered out of my room only to run smack bang into Dan, who was throwing his last shoe at Isaac's head. 'Hey! What's going on here?' I yelled stepping in front of Dan and walking halfway down the stairs. Isaac was shaking violently the expression on his face, murderous. I got to the bottom of the stairs and laid a hand on his chest. The shaking stopped instantly, 'Isaac calm down!' I ordered, pushing him into the kitchen. I sat him on one of the bar stools and shoved a massive bowl of cereal at him. 'Ok what the hell was that?' I asked after he'd demolished half of its contents.

'Dan stole my DSi and now he won't give it back,' he said passionately. I rolled my eyes of course they'd be fighting over a video game. I shook my head, 'Couldn't you have asked him about it at a more reasonable volume?' I asked indignantly, he grinned sheepishly. Grabbing another massive bowl of cereal I walked back upstairs, collecting Dan's shoes as I went. I found him sitting on my bedroom floor, knees tucked under his chin. I cleared my throat and handed him the shoes he'd thrown at Isaac's head a moment earlier then handed him the bowl of cereal. 'So are you gonna tell me where Isaac's DSi thingy is?' I asked fixing the most 'don't lie to me' look I could manage on my face. Mouth full of cornflakes he flashed me a grin, milk oozing down his chin. I smirked, 'real mature Dan! Where is it?' he was never any good at distraction. He sighed, 'it's behind the toilet,' he mumbled shovelling more cornflakes into his mouth. I shook my head in disbelief before thumping back downstairs to retrieve Isaac's DSi. Dan thumped downstairs minutes later ditching his bowl in the sink. I was perched on the counter munching on an apple. Isaac walked back into the kitchen and the two of them stood there looking at me, from the top of my head to the soles of my feet. 'What?' I asked raising an eyebrow.

'You need to eat more Kim,' Isaac said smirking. 'Yeah you're too skinny,' Dan added, I scoffed only in my household would you get teased for being too skinny. Sometimes I think if I didn't have boobs they would think I was anorexic. 'Don't you two have somewhere you need to be? Like school!' I said glaring while they scarped out the door, grabbing their school bags. 'Bye Kim!!' they yelled. 'Bye,' I said, knowing that they wouldn't hear me. Tossing my apple core in the bin I trudged back upstairs to discover who was sending me flowers. The rose had wilted ever so slightly, so I quickly ran back down stairs for a glass of water. Once the rose was settled I took a look at the note from my secret admirer.

Kim,

I'm sorry about yesterday. I'm sorry that Quil hurt you; I should have been there sooner. I need to talk to you soon...

Jared

I looked over at the rose again. So Jared was sending me flowers, how did he know I liked roses? Suddenly something came to my attention; I ran over to the window and forced it open. Looking around I realised he must have climbed up the trellis..._and broken it_. Spotting the broken pieces of wood at the bottom and without a thought to the fact that I was still in my PJ's I ran outside and retrieved them. Looking up from the ground my window seemed incredibly high. I hoped Jared hadn't hurt himself climbing up to my window. Over in the distance I heard what sounded like wolves howling. Feeling a little vulnerable I scooted back inside. I found myself once again sitting on my bed, bored out of my brains. As I sat there contemplating getting dressed my phone started beeping, thinking it was one of my girls I gleefully snatched at it.

_Bored yet?_

The first text read. Strange it was from an unknown number. Eliminating the girls, Embry, Quil and Jake, it left me with two options.

_Who is this? And how did you get my no_.? I texted back.

Crossing my fingers I chanted, 'please, please, PLEASE let it be Jared!' I was instantly rewarded.

_It's Jared & Bek, Deb & Eve all gave me your no._ I could feel my face warming and I was pleased that my friends were onboard with the whole Jared is good idea.

_Are you bored yet? _

_Insanely so! U? _

_I'm all but ripping my hair out!_ I giggled at that remark.

_I got ur message who told you I liked cottage roses? _

_It's either A. Bek B. Deb C. Eve or D. All of the above_

_Hmm! Is it D?_

_How did u no? _

_Ha ha ha I'm not stupid Jared I no my girls 2 well!_

_Touche! Listen I gotta talk 2 u_

_Yeah I figured with the whole note thing this morning..._

_I'm not kidding Kim! I really need to talk 2 u! It's important!_

_Whoa ok calm down sparky!_

_Alright, alright....Sparky?_

_Ask me again at a later date. Wat's rong?_

_It's better if I tell u in person. R u home?_

_Well yeah but I'm grounded over this whole fighting in skool business. Maybe if I behave til Friday I could ask about leaving the house on Saturday?_

I chewed on my lip as I sent that one. Wandering over to my wardrobe for some reason I was thinking about the trellis. Dad only put that up about two months ago and the wood was brand new. There was no way the stuff could have rotted away so quickly............The boys around here were acting so strangely first Jared, then Paul and now Embry...Come to think of it Quil and Jake had been acting weird as well. Even my brothers were behaving oddly, but what do five guys from my school and my twin brothers have in common? Then it hit me the odd shaking that happened whenever they got angry............Paul in Biology, Jared at the beach and during yesterday's fight, Dan at the hospital, Quil on Halloween and during our argument and Isaac this morning on the stairs.

However Jake and Embry didn't quite fit into my little theory. I needed more information, miffed that Jared hadn't texted me back I quickly texted Bek.

_Hi sweetie look I got a question 4 u. U no wen Embry disappeared did anything weird happen in his last few classes?_

I bounced up and down where I sat. Suddenly my phone started ringing. 'Hello?' 'Kim, what on EARTH! You almost got me a detention; I had to convince Mrs Davis that I was busting for the toilet!' 'Sorry girl,' 'You're forgiven. What's this about Embry?' 'You know that day he disappeared did anything weird happen in his last few classes?' 'Well yeah apparently Mrs Palmer was at him about a question he got wrong and he just flipped out, Deb told me he almost ripped the door off its hinges as he left and he was shaking like he was having a fit or something.' I could hear the tears in her voice as she spoke, I felt thoroughly ashamed of myself. 'I'm sorry babe but I got one last question is Jake around?' 'No apparently he went ballistic in Spanish after lunch yesterday, poor Eve she was so shaken up she was sitting next to him when he snapped.' I nodded my head; they did fit into my theory. 'What are you thinking Kim, has it got something to do with Embry?' she was getting suspicious. 'I've got a theory about Quil, but nothing seems to fit,' I lied, feeling terrible. 'Oh ok, seeya babe,' 'Bye hun,' I said listening to the dial tone. Snapping my phone shut and tossing it onto my bed.

Running my fingers through my hair, I paced around my room going over the facts in my head. My theory about the odd things happening to the boys of La Push was sounding more and more true. Something odd was going on around here but what? Maybe the boys were getting sick? Well the fever and violent shaking they all had could explain that. But the intense bursts of anger didn't quite fit. I was missing something, I needed more information. I'd stopped pacing and was facing my bookcase, looking at an old dark green box that had been left to me in Gran's will. Then it hit me and I remembered something Gran had said to me when I was 10, I'd been sent back to Gran's for a visit because I'd been suspended for biting a boy at school. Hey I had my reasons the kid stole Isaac's lunch and he wouldn't give it back! But anyway she didn't tell me off she just laughed........................................................................................

'_Ah Kimberly,' she laughed, shaking her head. My face turned red and I dropped my gaze, my curls flying across my face. Mom cut my hair to teach me a lesson, so now it was very short and wouldn't stay behind my ears. Gran lifted my chin with her hand, her own green eyes holding mine, 'it's not a bad thing my dear, wanting to protect your family, just be careful how you go about it,' she said patting my cheek. Getting up she took my hand and we walked into Gran's personal library and study. I liked Gran's study it was filled with books that were all about the tribe and the stories that had been handed down through word of mouth for generations. But in Gran's library had brought all the stories into one place, my favourite book was one that Gran had collected from the Uleys, it was a diary written by the wife of Levi Uley. He was second in command to Ephraim Black, who was the original Chief when Gran was little. Gran always read to me from it when I stayed at her house, it was like reading a fantasy novel because sometimes there was more fiction than fact in her words. 'Gran are we reading the Uley book today?' I asked hopping up down on the spot. _

'_Not today my dear, we are going to read something different,' I frowned slightly. Gran took a dark green box from the top shelf; it was covered in little flowers and had a solid gold latch on the front. Placing it on the coffee table she opened it and pulled out a small book with a faded deep red material cover. The cover was tattered and worn and looked very old, placing it on the table she pulled out a black photo album. The leather cover was cracked and faded though it didn't look as old as the red book. Closing the box she flipped open the photo album revealing a faded black and white photo that looked more brown than black. In the photo were two young boys and a young girl. The young girl was being piggie backed by one of the young boys and the two were laughing, the other boy was doubled over, clutching his stomach and laughing at the two others. 'Who are they Gran?' I asked, my eyebrow crinkling in confusion. She smiled at me, the wrinkles around her eyes fanned out and her green eyes sparkled. 'This is me my darling,' she said pointing at the laughing little girl. 'And this is my brother,' she said pointing at the boy doubled over in laughter. 'Uncle Gideon!' I crowed, I missed Great Uncle Gideon, he was funny and was always telling stories about Gran and Gramps when they were kids. 'And this is Caleb,' she said pointing at the young boy who she was being piggie backed by. 'Gramps!' I bounced off the couch and almost basically pressed my nose to the photo. _

'_Come on darling sit back and we'll look at some more,' she laughed, sitting me back on the couch. Putting the photo album in my lap, she showed me photos of her and Gramps as children, then when they were a little older, then there were wedding photos and then there were photos of Dad as a baby. Shutting the book, I saw that Gran looked a little sad, 'Gran what's wrong?' I asked, placing my soft little hand on hers. 'Nothing's wrong my darling, it's just that one day I won't be here and this will all fall to you, the women of our family have always protected those they loved the most even if it was to be their down fall. Someday my darling Kimberly, you will take my place here and protect our boys, protect our tribe, they will one day look to you for wisdom and guidance and you will pass these wisdoms onto your own daughters.' She said gravely, sounding very wise and not so much old but like she was part of something very magical and ancient, something that I would never understand. 'Why is that Gran?' I asked feeling very young and ignorant. _

'_Because my dear a choice was made by a woman of our family a long time ago, tying her female descendents in with her making it both our blessing and our curse, this my dear is our burden to bear, we spend our lives protecting our men from their own curse, it is what we live for, our reason for existing,' I felt frightened by Gran's words, they sounded as if they were condemning me to a life I never asked for, a life from the sounds of it I would never ever want....._........................................................................................

* * *

The dark green box covered in little flowers with a solid gold latch now sat covered in dust on the bottom shelf of my book case. I was beginning to understand what Gran had said to me all those years ago, but for now the answers I needed were in this box. Pulling the box out of the book case I dusted it off, sitting on the floor I opened the box and took a look. Inside the box were the Uley book, the deep red book, the photo album, a letter and two books I didn't recognise. One was royal blue in colour with a gold band across the top, the other was pale green in colour and had a red rose painted on the front. I was confused what did Gran want me to do? Setting them aside I picked up the letter, it was addressed to me and in Gran's writing.

My Dearest Kimberly,

If you are reading this my darling it means I am no longer with you and strange things are beginning to happen again at La Push. I'm sorry my love, I only ever wanted to protect you and your brothers and sister from our curse, so if you blame anyone for your departure from La Push, please let it be me. I wanted you to be free of this my dear so you would not have to live your life the way I did, a life steeped in secrets, legends and lies. But fate planned otherwise, I knew from the moment you were born that you carried our burden; your green eyes said it all. When Sarah was born, I thought the curse had been broken, that we were free, but when you were born well I realised that we weren't. So now that my time is coming to an end, it is your turn to take up our fight.

My dear you and I are unique, our green eyes mark us for what we are, we are neutralisers, we are created to calm the raging beast that is threatening to take control of our young men and change them into werewolves. Yes my darling every single story, every legend I ever told you is true. Our tribe were descended from wolves and it is this form our young men take to protect our tribe from the cold ones. You my dear would probably know them as vampires. However Hollywood uses a bit of poetic license and gets things wrong as usual. My father, Levi Uley was a werewolf, I saw him make the change along with Ephraim Black and Quil Atera (not your friend, his great grandfather). I've met vampires as well, not something I would recommend doing but still it was necessary at the time and they weren't what you think. They were different, civilised and didn't kill humans – or so they claimed – with their strange golden eyes.

Since you are reading this it means that our young men are becoming werewolves once again. I've managed well enough on my own to keep a few generations of our tribe safe from their own genetics, but now it is your turn. I'm sorry my dear that I'm leaving you in the lurch like this I really wanted to explain this to you myself when you were older, but like I said fate has planned otherwise. In this box I've left you as much as the Council will allow to equip you for what the future will throw at you. The Uley book written by my mother, Deana, my journal and two other books you probably won't recognise. The royal blue one contains information on werewolves, the cold ones and more specifically the Cullens – the golden eyed vampires I mentioned. The pale green one contains information on a little known phenomenon called 'imprinting'. I've tried to compile as much as I can to help you, but there is not much.

Also, I've left my place amongst the Council and more specifically the Elders to you my dear. I know you will teach those old fashioned, fuddy duddies a thing or to, show them that Morgan/Uley spirit I know that's in you. I love you and your siblings with all my heart my Kimberly, please keep protecting them, especially the boys.

All my love now and forever

Gran

Lowering the letter, I let what I had just discovered sink in. Werewolves, neutralisers, cold ones, Cullens, vampires that didn't hunt humans!! Oh My God! What had I gotten myself into? Placing everything back in the box, I scrambled for my phone, finding Jared's number I punched in the call button. 'Hello?' Jared's deep voice rumbled across the line. My throat went dry, my tongue swelled up in my mouth. 'Jared,' I choked out past the sob I could feel building in my throat. 'Kim?' he sounded both surprised and confused. 'Listen, can you meet me at First Beach tomorrow? At around 10:30?' I asked, swallowing past the lump in my throat. 'Sure ok that's fine by me,' he stuttered out. 'Ok I'll see you then, bye,' I said hanging up before he could ask why I was panicking. Holy Shit what had I gotten myself into?

**Out of the frying and into the fire for Kim!! Please REVIEW!!!**


	15. Chapter 14: Where Do I Go From Here

**Secrets, Werewolves & Coming Home**

**OMG! I'm at 39 reviews now! This is incredible! I just want one more then I'll have 40! Shout out to BookloverLaura for her reviews, thank you so much! Anyway enjoy this next chapter sorry it's taken me so long to get this out Yr 12 is a nightmare! Anyway enjoy and PLEASE review! Luv Juno**

Chapter 14 – Where Do I Go From Here

_What am I doing here?_ I thought to myself. This was insane, dangerous, and suicidal even! Here I was at 20 past 10 sitting on a log watching the waves crash against the shore as I waited for Jared, who may or may not be a WEREWOLF! I shivered and pulled my hood over my head as the wind picked up and the sky turned grey. I lifted my head and inhaled that wet scent you get before a rainstorm, it was soothing and I felt a lot calmer on the outside but the internal karate moves continued. What was I going to say, 'Hey Jared! Yeah I know you're a werewolf!' I don't think so. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn't notice him til he was standing behind me, 'You're early,' he remarked. Startled, I spun around to face him, hand pressed over my heart. 'Oh Jared you scared me!' I exclaimed feigning annoyance. His smirk became a grin as he sat next to me. We sat there in awkward silence for a few moments; I kept sneaking glances at him out of the corner of my eye as I tried to channel my thoughts and settle my stomach. I could feel the waves of heat rolling off him as we sat there. 'Thanks for coming to see me, what made you change your mind?' he asked sounding slightly suspicious.

'Well you did say it was urgent and...I guess I got curious,' I said vaguely, making the fatal mistake of looking into his eyes. Those mahogany orbs smouldered and burned, ensnaring and hypnotising me into an awed stillness. Some small part of my brain wondered if this is how a mouse feels before being eaten by a snake. An eerie howling in the not too far distance caused me to break away first, whipping my head around I searched the tree line for any sign of the enormous black wolf that kept stalking me in my nightmares, except for last night's dream. At the same time I scooted closer to Jared closing the charged distance between us. He chuckled softly a nervous sound, 'everything alright?' he asked taking my hand in a massive one of his. I shuddered and swallowed rather loudly, 'sorry thought I heard something,' I whispered, focusing my attention anywhere but Jared's worried yet smouldering gaze.

'So!' I said brightly, squeezing his hand. 'You had something you wanted to tell me?' I asked, looking him in the eye. He looked really nervous like the rest of his existence depended on this one moment. 'Jared...' I trailed off. I knew he was on the verge of revealing something massive and I was 99.9% positive I knew what he was going to say. 'Kim do you remember the tales of our history of our tribe?' he asked tentatively. Alright so that's how he was going to play it. 'Yeah,' I replied, keeping the wryness out of my voice. 'Do you remember the ones about our ancestors being descended from wolves?' He was getting warmer. 'Yeah, what about them?' I asked, squeezing his hand again in encouragement.

He cleared his throat, a nervous sound. 'What do you know about werewolves Kim?' I raised an eyebrow, 'Do you mean Quileute ones or Hollywood's botched up version?' I quipped, earning a nervous chuckle from Jared. 'Quileute ones, Kim!' his tone hardened, I could feel my eyes widening slightly. I thought about it for a minute... 'Well umm when a cold one a.k.a a vampire moves into the neighbourhood the males of a certain age get what's known as _the fever_ and start turning into gigantic wolves,' I repeated word for perfect word a section of Gran's book on werewolves. Jared had a shocked look on his face and I instantly knew I'd said way too much.

'Kim,' his voice took on a serious edge as he took hold of my other hand. He shut his eyes for a second and I worried he was gonna back down. 'It's all true Kim, all the legends the folklore, every last story,' he said hurriedly. I must have looked confused when he said this cause he added. 'I'm a werewolf Kim,' he said a little slower this time, squeezing both of my hands. I sat there for what seemed like an age just processing the information. What I had been blocking since my discovery yesterday started seeping across the barrier I'd placed in my mind. Everything was true; Jared and possibly four other boys were running around as enormous wolves. I finally returned to my senses when Jared released my hands.

'It's ok, I know!' I blurted. I flicked my hood off my head and took a long hard look at Jared's suspicious expression. 'How long?' he asked, I swallowed and looked away from Jared's hard and cold expression. 'I had suspicions for months but I didn't figure it out until yesterday,' I said evenly, hiding the panic building inside me. 'What made you suspicious?' he asked, his voice no longer sounding hard and cold. I frowned slightly, 'Lots of little things, the disappearing and then reappearing several weeks later, the sudden growth spurt, the weird little sudden outbursts of anger and this...' I said, gently placing a hand on his cheek feeling the heat radiating across my palm, '...was a dead giveaway,' I said shaking my head.

He flushed bright red and averted his eyes from my curious expression. 'Why didn't you tell me sooner?' I asked feeling a deep ache in my heart. I knew from what I'd read in Gran's book that werewolves, especially young werewolves were dangerous and volatile. Was he gonna tell me that I couldn't see him anymore? I brushed that horrific thought aside and tried to exude patience as I waited for his answer. I watched as several unrecognisable emotions flashed across his face. 'There were so many times I wanted to tell, but the moment never seemed quite right and I didn't want you to be afraid of me, disgusted by what I am,' he said sorrowfully. I made a choking noise in the back of my throat. 'Disgusted by YOU!' I said incredulously, shock being the dominant feature on my face.

'How could I ever be disgusted by someone as wonderful and extraordinary as you?' my mouth overriding my brain momentarily and telling him the absolute truth. He smiled, finally a smile that reached his eyes and he looked the happiest I'd seen him since he got here. Wrapping those strong warm arms around my tiny frame he pulled me closer into his side. Engulfed by heat that seemed to radiate from somewhere within him, I snaked my arms around his waist and leaned into his embrace. 'You honestly don't mind that I run around as a giant werewolf at night?' he asked, I felt his warm breath rustle through my hair. I smiled I was blissfully happy, I don't think you could find anyone on the planet happier than me in this moment.

'No it honestly doesn't bother me at all,' I said frankly. He huffed in contentment; moments like these made it awful hard for me to remember why I couldn't be more than just his best 'girl' friend. 'Jared since you've been honest with me and I'm honoured that you told me at all, I have something that I want to tell you,' I said truthfully as I pulled away. He looked slightly sad when I did this but I needed to keep a clear head. 'Jared you're not the only one carrying a burden, keeping a secret, even from those you care about the most,' I sucked in a raged breath, past the lump forming in my throat.

'I only found out yesterday but it explains a lot of the weird stuff that's been happening around me,' I burbled, stalling for more time. I snuck a glance at him only seeing confusion written across his face. I took a deep breath and gathered my courage. 'Jared I'm a neutraliser, it may be yours and the pack's job to protect the tribe from vampires but it's my job alone to protect you from yourselves and your anger,' my voice faltered on the last word. I could feel my eyes brimming with and I turned away from Jared, he didn't need to bear witness to my shame.

'Are you sure?' he choked out a moment later. Frustrated I spun back around to face him feeling a little disconcerted about how close he was. 'Jared look at me! How many Quileute or Makah girls for that matter look like me!' I challenged, green eyes flashing. He studied me for a moment and to my utter embarrassment more tears leaked from the corner of my eyes. 'Oh Kim,' he said folding me into his arms again. I felt so guilty as I sobbed into his chest, here I was crying my eyes out and he's gone and admitted he's a werewolf. That train of thought brought on a fresh round of tears.

'Jared I'm so sorry for lumping all this on you, my problems are insignificant in comparison to yours,' I burbled, wiping my face. 'Kim!' he chastised gently, pulling away to look me in the eye. 'Don't ever think like that! Nothing involving you is insignificant,' he said kindly. I snorted, probably not the most attractive thing to do given the situation. 'Yeah but I'm not the one morphing into a giant wolf every time I lose my temper!' I quipped, throwing him a dirty look. He smirked, 'Fair enough! Oh and it's phasing not morphing by the way,' he teased.

I rolled my eyes, 'Guess I must have missed that section of Gran's book,' I said dryly. He just nodded a goofy grin stretched across his face. We sat there exchanging information, I quizzed him about werewolves and the pack and he pressed me for as much as I knew about what I was. 'Jared?' I asked after a moment's silence. 'Kim,' he said, I liked the way he said my name, like I was important, it sounded slightly worshipful. 'What's imprinting?' I asked remembering Gran's mention of it in her letter. He instantly froze, oh shit had I said something wrong?

'Jared if it's too hard to explain you don't have to tell me,' I said biting my tongue and stifling my curiosity. He shook himself slightly, looking a little like a big puppy dog, I couldn't help myself and before I knew it a small giggle escaped from my lips. 'What?' he asked a hint of a smile playing across his lips. I shook my head; no way was I telling him what I was thinking in my messed up mind. 'Please Kim,' he pouted. God! I'm in trouble now! That pout of his was a weapon of mass destruction, I mean if I wasn't sitting down my knees would have given way. I sincerely hope he hadn't noticed the slightly hungry look on my face.

'Please Kim,' he breathed leaning in so that our lips were merely inches apart. I gasped and sucked in a shocked breath which somehow got lodged in my throat as my heart starting beating irregularly. I was fairly sure that my cheeks were a bright shade of red too. I groaned, God I really had it bad for this boy. 'I was thinking a few minutes earlier how much you looked like a puppy dog,' I admitted guiltily. He was silent for a minute; I honestly thought I'd offended him. Then I realised the log we were sitting on was shaking. The idiot was laughing! 'Hey this is so not funny!' I said indignantly, before cracking a smile myself.

I was glad I'd made him laugh, he looked like the Jared of old, the Jared who was unaffected by magic and werewolves and protecting the tribe. His laugh was carefree; there was no tension in his voice or worry behind his eyes. He was just Jared. 'Ok no seriously what is imprinting, it's not one of those taboo subjects is it? I asked jokingly. 'Umm,' he said scratching his head. 'Uh sorry am I being nosy?' Nosy was Mom's favourite word for describing me when I was prying into someone's business.

'Not really but I'm just trying to figure out how to explain it without freaking you out,' he said fixing me with a serious look. I blinked several times before he launched into his explanation. 'What other tales of our tribe do you remember? Does anything about Taha Aki or the Third Wife sound familiar?' he asked hesitantly, I had a blank look on my face then a light bulb moment. 'Ohh so that's what imprinting is,' I exclaimed remembering one story Gran had told me many times. 'But that doesn't sound like it would warrant a freak out and beside from what I know imprinting is quite rare isn't it?' I asked, but the look on Jared's face said otherwise. 'Ahh there's more!' I said purposefully, widening my eyes.

He chuckled, 'Yeah there's more,' he said sheepishly. I looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to explain further. 'Well it's not quite as rare as you think,' he said cryptically. Ahh! These vague clues of his were driving me insane! 'Ok translation I'm guessing someone in the pack has imprinted already,' I said wryly, elbowing him in the rib cage lightly. He winced dramatically and laughed at me. 'Yeah someone or someone's in the pack have imprinted,' he said even more cryptically. I groaned and slapped a hand to my forehead. 'Jared come on! You're killing me here!' I exclaimed in exasperation.

He had an odd little smile on his face, I couldn't quite place it, it seemed impressed and astounded and slightly possessive, his whole face lit up when he smiled like that. 'Come on you gotta give me something, I'm dying here!' I was frustrated beyond belief. But when he smiled at me like that, well if he had asked me a question I probably would have said yes. 'Two of us have imprinted,' he said, I felt like I was missing something, like there was some massive punch line to a joke no one had bothered to tell me about. 'Who's imprinted?' I asked, feeling really stupid.

'Sam has,' he said biting his tongue and looking really nervous again. I felt my eyebrows pull together, 'Sam? As in Sam Uley?' I asked incredulously, eyebrows raised. His expression changed looking at me in shock, 'Yeah as in Sam Uley. Why?' I shook my head a lot of things started connecting in my head, Sam was the Alpha, it explained Paul and Jared's almost reverent and submissive behaviour back at the beach all those weeks ago. 'Nothing go on, who else has imprinted?' I asked hesitantly, for some reason I felt like I didn't want to know the answer.

'I have Kim,' he said releasing the breath he'd been holding in. I froze, shock coursing through my veins, poisoning my system. 'Who's the lucky girl?' I asked, trying to phrase it jokingly but failing miserably. If he said Gisele, I'd die right there and then from a broken heart, I just hoped the girl he imprinted on would be nice enough to let me stay his friend. 'If you've imprinted on Gisele, I....' threatened weakly before realising I'd said it out loud, where the hell did all the jealousy come from? He chuckled softly, 'No I haven't imprinted on Gisele, where on earth would you get that idea from?' I shrugged my shoulders.

'Kim,' he whispered, jeez he really was nervous now. He took my hand and looked me straight in the eye, 'I've imprinted on you.' I froze again; my thoughts were blank as I tried to remember how to operate my vocal cords. Oh my God! Of all the girls in La Push he imprinted on ME! I didn't know whether to feel suspicious, insulted or ecstatic! I rolled through my memories from the past few weeks of our friendship. 'Ok so hang on a second you're saying that the only reason, you spoke to me that day in English was because of some werewolf phenomenon that basically tied us together forever! Am I right so far?' I asked, Jared's expression was a mixture of sad and sheepish.

I was trying to put this together in my head, when my phone rang, 'Hello,' I said hurriedly not really paying attention to whoever was on the other end of the line. I was still feeling conflicted and confused about the whole situation unfolding right before my eyes to concentrate on anything else. 'KIMBERLY LORRAINE MORGAN YOU WILL GET YOUR BUTT BACK IN THIS HOUSE IN 10 MINUTES OR I AM CALLING THE POLICE! YOUR ARE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE YOUNG LADY! DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT _YOUR_ _GROUNDED_ MEANS,' Mom ranted through the phone. I turned and faced Jared; the expression of his face mirrored my sudden shock and horror. Fuck I'm in shit now!


	16. Chapter 15: Leaving it All Behind

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Ok new chapter sorry to leave y'all hanging with the last chapter. And please review I only got 1 review for the last chapter! Anyway enjoy! Luv Juno **

**P.S. If anyone can guess who 'the woman' is gets a character named after them in the next chapter! **

Chapter 15 – Leaving it All Behind

'Kimberly!' Mom's voice warned as I stomped my boots on the mat before entering the kitchen. I could faintly hear the sound of Jared's ute pulling out of the driveway. Mom and to my intense shock Dad were sitting at the dining table, stern looks on both their faces. 'Sit down Kimberly,' Dad ordered, I huffed and plonked myself in a chair at the furthest end of the table, they only called me Kimberly when I was in deep shit. We sat there for I don't know how long just staring each other down. Dad broke first, 'Where the HELL were you young lady!' he fumed, the tops of his ears turning red. 'Don't you have any idea what your grounded means?' he ranted, nostrils flaring this time. I sat there in silence and let him finish his lecture. Mom was sending me death glares from the other end of the table; she had a hold of one of Dad's hands, probably to stop him lunging at me across the table.

'Kim what's gotten into you? Your starting fights at school, getting yourself suspended,' Mom said, visibly squeezing Dad's hand 'I DIDN'T START THAT FIGHT AND YOU KNOW IT!' I yelled leaping from my chair and tipping it over. 'Kimberly don't you DARE speak to your mother like that!' Dad screamed, trying and failing to jump out of his chair too thanks to Mom's death grip. 'Why do you never listen to me? I never started that fight! It's not my fault that Gisele is a complete physio!' I yelled in frustration.

'Kimberly sit down and let's discuss this,' Mom said, looking pointedly at Dad, his face slowly returning to normal colour. My lips were pressed together in a thin line as I picked up my chair and sat back down. My hands were bunched into fists in my lap, a small portion of my brain wondered if this was how Jared and the other boys felt before they phased that first time, all hate and anger and rage. I inhaled and exhaled a few times trying to rein in my anger. 'Look I know I shouldn't have left the house, but it was an emergency! Honest!' I reasoned after no one had spoken for a while. Dad got angry again, 'And what may I ask was so important?' his tone was sarcastic. I balked, that was Jared's secret not mine, something he had told me in the strictest of confidence.

'I needed information,' I said, looking both of them in the eye. Mom laughed coldly, 'And yet you had to go behind our backs to get it! Kim if you needed help we would have let you ring Bek when we got home,' she said evenly 'Hold on what made you think the information I needed would come from Bek?' they exchanged confused looks. I let out a short laugh in disbelief. 'Huh you two are unbelievable! When were you gonna plan on telling me by the way?' I sounded so condescending.

Mom shot Dad a curious look. 'Tell you what exactly?' Dad asked. The look of shock was written all over my face. 'You honestly don't know? Well's here's a clue for you, what was in Gran's will? What did she pass onto me? Trust me it's a lot more than a box of old history novels,' Dad gulped and all the blood drained out of Mom's face. I pushed back from the table, 'Yeah that's what I thought.'

The minute I left the room they instantly started whispering, the sound growing fainter as I thumped up the stairs to my room. God could they be any more hypocritical? They go all agro on me for leaving the house when they've been lying to me for the past 16 years? I paced around my room, pulling off my boots and dumping them in the corner. This really was the last thing I needed right now! What with trying to get my head around this new mythical world full of werewolves, vampires, neutralisers and imprints; being grounded seemed very inadequate all of a sudden. I could hear the sound of the washing machine spluttering to life, great now I can't hear anything!

I padded across the floor and cracked open the door '...she's not ready...she's not even 17 for Christ's sake! ...How's she supposed to hold her own against the Council, the Elders?' I was catching snippets of their conversation. I carefully crept out into the hall and hide in the shadow cast by the top of the stairs. 'David what's gonna happen to her? I mean this is the reason we left here in the first place!' Mom sounded like she wanted to yell, but was fighting to keep her voice down. 'Ruth calm down, we knew this was going to happen eventually, Kim's not a child anymore, she's a Morgan she'll survive, Mom was always a good judge of character and it's obvious that had faith in her. We just gotta let her make her own decisions...' Dad's voice faded as I went back to my room.

God what the hell am I gonna do? This is crazy! Gran must have got it wrong when she said she meant for me to be on the Council. That's Dad's job or the twins not me! I feel my heart rate increasing, 'Calm down Kim, this is obviously a mistake, Gran probably meant it for Dad everything will be fine!' I whispered to myself. Jeez now I'm talking to myself, what next! Great way to convince yourself you're not crazy Kim! God what am I gonna do? I stopped in front of my mirror and stared at myself, avoiding looking directly at my eyes. Yep I was still me, skinny frame, long legs, average sized boobs, russet coloured skin and crazy, wild curly dark brown hair. Just another average Native American girl, except for the eyes, those bright green emeralds staring back at me, those definitely weren't stock standard!

Ugh, I couldn't look at myself anymore, I used to like my eyes I felt a little bit special knowing I had green eyes when everyone else had brown ones. Now I didn't like them so much, especially since I knew what they signified. Getting bored of pacing I laid down on my bed and tried to calm my thoughts. I could still hear the whirr of the washing machine and the faint buzz of Mom and Dad's conversation downstairs. I crossed my arms over my eyes, concentrating on the whirr of the washing machine as it went round and round and round...

I hit the ground running, fear coursing through my veins and poisoning my system. I was terrified, running from something that was truly terrible. All I knew was I had to find Jared, he'd make everything better he'd protect me, it was his job. I just kept running, I tripped and stumbled into a clearing. All around me were people dressed in thick cloaks, with their hoods pulled low to hide their faces. In the middle of the clearing was an altar with ropes and bindings. 'Run Kimberly!' I tore my gaze from the altar to see Gran and a woman I didn't recognise chained to a tree. 'Run my dear this is not a life for you! Run while you still can!' the woman yelled to me.

I struggled to get to my feet when I finally took notice of what I was wearing. It was a long billowy white dress, with an enormous train. It snuggled close to my body, hugging what little curves I had and giving me cleavage. Suddenly the cloaked figures pulled off their hoods and I began to recognise different faces, Sam, Paul, Embry, Jacob, Quil, Seth Clearwater, his sister Leah, Colin and Brady, friends of my brothers, even my brothers and Jared were part of the circle too. 'Run Kim!' Gran screamed again as the sounds of ripping and snarling began to fill the clearing. Suddenly I was surrounded by 12 enormous horse sized wolves of all different colours and sizes, snarling and growling. I was fixated on the dark brown wolf that stood where Jared did only seconds ago.

It was the only one not snarling but was also staring pointedly at me. I rushed to the other end of the clearing straight at the Jared wolf, keen to be closer to it...him, to feel safer. Suddenly Mom, Dad and Seth and Leah's dad, Harry appeared out of nowhere, blocking my path to Jared. 'What is...' my words got lost as Dad and Harry clamped down on my arms and started forcing me away from Jared, back to the altar. I struggled to escape their iron grip when I noticed Mom holding a long silver knife, dripping with fresh blood. I looked around and noticed both Gran and the woman slumped against the base of the tree. Their throats slashed, I continued in my struggles to get away from them, letting rip a bloodcurdling, bone melting scream that would have scared even the bravest of wolves.

'Why? Please let me go!' I pleaded as they strapped me down to the altar. They moved methodically tying both my wrists and feet in place, whispering incantations in an odd dialect that did not sound either English or Quileute. I thrashed against my bindings, trying to loosen them. All of a sudden Jared wolf let out a snarling feral growl, lunging toward my Mom, teeth bared. In a move that didn't seem very Mom like at all she slashed at his face with the knife, blocking his attack. The rest of the wolves acting as if on autopilot blocked Jared from my view, forcing him further and further away from me and into the forest. 'Do it now!' Harry yelled at my mother, she turned back to me raising the knife in her hand high over my heart. 'Don't do this!' I pleaded, staring at the shiny tip of the knife. My mother laughed as she plunged the knife into my...

'No!' I yelled flying forward off my bed, my heart pounding in my chest. It took me a moment longer to realise that I wasn't a dead body on an altar in the middle of the woods but back home in my room, still grounded. 'Kim dinner!' Mom yelled, I looked out the window, there was barely any light left, the sun had almost gone down and the sky looked almost purple. 'Kim?' Isaac knocked on my door; I rubbed my eyes and took a better look at him. How could I have not noticed it before? Both he and Dan had shot up considerably; both of them reminded me of Jared's sudden change. How had I missed this? 'Kim you coming?' he asked. I nodded and shuffled out of my room, pausing to take on last look out the window.

Dinner that night had been torture, Mom and Dad didn't talk to me at all shooting me odd glances, I just stared at my plate, slowly chewing on my food but not actually tasting it. Isaac was completely oblivious chattering happily about something inane. Dan kept shooting me worried glance over the salad, I just shook my head ending our silent conversation. Now it was 10:00 at night and I was still awake, thinking and feeling my floor vibrate as the twins snores picked up. I couldn't deal with this, the silence was deafening I couldn't deal with it, it gave me room to think and I didn't want to think. I was still dressed but I couldn't be stuffed moving to change my clothes.

I can't stay here and fail the people I care for the most; I had failed Jared I couldn't prevent him from turning into a werewolf, I had failed Gran she had left me this huge job to do and I was failing her again and again and sooner or later I would fail Dan and Isaac it was already happening and both of them would eventually be werewolves, running around fighting vampires. I can't stay here and watch everyone I care about pay for my mistakes. Spurred into action, I pulled a duffel bag out from under my bed and started throwing clothes into it. I picked up Gran's books as an afterthought and placed them in there too. I pulled a small tin off my shelf, I took out the contents folding them and stuffing them into my back pocket.

As I was stuffing my phone into a side pocket on my bag I noticed a photo sitting on my bedside table. Eve had given it to me a few days before I'd been suspended; it was of me and Jared. I remembered that day very well, I'd dumped a bottle of water on his head (well Deb dared me too!) and ran for it laughing my head off. Well anyway Jared chased me around the quad dripping wet, me being a complete idiot started shrieking and laughing at the same time. I couldn't help it he looked ridiculous. He eventually caught me, the both of us falling to the ground where he started tickling me to death. Hence the picture of the two of us rolling around on the grass laughing our heads off.

I sighed talking a closer look at Jared's expression, how had I not seen it earlier, God I'm an idiot! I walked back over to my duffel bag and tucked it in Gran's photo album next to the photo of her, grandpa and Gideon. I quickly shuffled downstairs and grabbed some apples out the fruit bowl; I left some letters on the counter, one for Mom and Dad, one for the twins and one for Jared. I scarped back up stairs and stowed my apples. As I pulled on my boots I took one last look at my room; I wouldn't be coming back here for a while, I didn't know how long it would be until I saw this place again. I shook myself, pulled on a coat and opened the window.

The brisk night air shocked me as it blew into my room lowering the temperature severely. Bracing myself I clambered out of my window climbed down the trellis and ran off into the night...


	17. Chapter 16: Orange, Pink and Purple

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Hiya guys, what's going on! I only got 3 reviews for the last chapter and since Julia was the only one who bothered to put in an answer for the competition she gets a character named after her. Oh big shout out to WerewolfPackLuver for my new favourite word 'Kared'. Here's the next chapter, enjoy and like always...review, Review, REVIEW! **

**Luv Junosphere**

**P.S the 'woman' was the third wife **

Chapter 16 – Orange, Pink and Purple

I just made it to the bus depot when two coaches pulled up. Paying for my ticket and avoiding the creepy looking gaze of the ticket collector, I hopped on and picked a spot near the middle of the bus. Collapsing into the seat next to the window, I concentrated on reading the sign next to the ticket office rather than the torrent of thoughts swirling around my mind. Getting to the bus depot had been a nightmare; I had to keep jumping into the bushes to avoid being spotted by cars. I didn't want to cut through the forest, least I was caught by Jared or one of the wolf boys. Jeez that would have been awkward trying to explain my way out of that one!

I was jerked out of my reverie by the sounds of the bus pulling out of the depot. Realising I had tears sliding down my face I brushed them away angrily, frustrated at myself for getting so upset. The sky was black as pitch, the angry looking clouds rolling in were heavy with rain, lightening was just starting to crackle across the sky. I hope Jared wasn't running around in the rain chasing vampires. I hope he was at home catching up on sleep he looked so tired today. The forests of La Push flashed past the window as the bus moved further and further away from home. Wiping away more tears I scanned the bus.

Other than myself and the bus driver, who in my opinion was as equally creepy as the ticket collector, there were only three other people here. A boy and a girl sat close to the front of the bus, they looked as if they were holding hands. He leaned over and whispered something in her ear, she giggled softly before turning her head to kiss him. I felt a pang of jealously as I watched them, so sure in each other's love. That little tug I hadn't felt for a while started pulling on my heart and I knew now what it signified. I was fairly sure if I followed the direction of the tug I would find Jared at the end of it.

I leaned my head against the window and squeezed my eyes shut, allowing my stupidity and idiocy to wash over me. Opening my eyes I watched the raindrops race each other down the window pane. Getting frustrated after a minute of pitting raindrops against each other I pulled the picture of Jared and me out of my bag. I smiled fondly recalling better memories. 'Is that your boyfriend?' a low voice asked. I jumped startled at the new voice, turning around I spotted a small face peering at me over the chair. The girl who I hadn't seen in my first sweep of the bus, leapt into the seat across the aisle. Turning in the seat she wacked the boy who was slumped low in the seat behind her.

'Trey wake up! I want you to meet my new friend...' she looked at me expectantly, grey eyes flashing. 'Kim,' I answered, smiling. I liked this girl instantly she seemed like the type that was ready for anything, always up for the next adventure. The boy grumbled and pulled his beanie off his eyes. 'Whadaya want Trin?' he yawned, stretching his long limbs. Another set of grey eyes met mine but these ones were sleepy looking instead of sparkling with energy. 'This you pothead,' she said making a grand gesture with her hands, 'is my new friend Kim,' the girl was bouncing up and down in her seat.

'Hi,' I said calmly, trying to balance out the Duracell bunny's enthusiasm. 'Hey I'm Trey and this little psycho here is my sis Trinity,' he said fondly, swiping affectionately at the back of her head. 'Hey!' she complained, trying to grab back the black beanie Trey had just swiped. He was laughing as he held it over her head. Her hair had spilled out from under her beanie, I was shocked, as well as her natural silvery blond hair she had pink and orange streaks through it. 'Your hair looks like a sunrise,' I complemented, momentarily distracted she swung back to face me.

'Do you like it?' she asked, picking up an orange section and sifting it between her fingers. I nodded my head, feeling my pony tail slap the back of my neck. 'Is your hair naturally curly?' she asked, gesturing at my head. 'Yeah unfortunately it's the biggest pain in my arse,' I said pushing a curl that had escaped from its binding back behind my ear. 'Nah I think it looks awesome, at least your hair not purple!' she said cheekily, snatching Trey's beanie off his head revealing a mop of straight purple hair.

'Julia Trinity Moonshine Slade, give that back!' he ordered, as his sister laughed evilly swinging the beanie over his head. 'Not a chance in hell Stanley Trey Andrew Slade!' she cackled bouncing off the seat into the one in front of me. I couldn't help it I cracked up, they were just too funny. The two of them looked at me then at each other before they busted out laughing as well. 'Sorry but how did your parents come up with Moonshine and Stanley?' I asked clutching the side of the seat to keep myself from falling out. Trinity and Trey snatched their respective beanies back off each other; she poked her tongue out at him before shoving her hair back underneath it.

'Stanley was the name of some great great grandfather and Moonshine was well...let's just say Mom was out of it when we were born,' Trey shook his head in disbelief at his mother's stupidity. 'What about you Kim any weird middle names we need to know about?' Trinity asked leaning over the seat to tug one of my curls. I shook my head, pony tail swinging to slap the side of my face. 'Nope I'm just plain old Kimberly Lorraine Morgan,' I said tossing my bag onto the floor and patting the seat next to me. Trinity grinned and bounced into the seat. 'There's nothing plain or old about you Kim,' she said fondly, patting my arm. 'Anyway what are you runnin' from?' she asked grey eyes becoming round with curiosity. Trey's head shot up curiosity gleaming in his grey eyes too.

'What do you mean? I'm not running from anything,' I said defensively. Trinity crossed her arms over her chest. 'Ah Huh sure sure,' she said cheekily, winking at me, 'Because everyone gets on a bus to god knows where in the middle of the night,' I shook my head, giving her a small shove. She poked her tongue out at me changing tactic, 'So who's the boy?' I groaned, slapping a hand to my forehead, Trinity started giggling. 'I think I'm gonna go back to sleep now,' Trey said nervously, sinking back down into his seat.

I glared at him, 'Wuss!' I yelled he just shook his head. Seconds later he was snoring. 'How do they do that? I've got two at home and they never cease to amaze me,' I whispered watching as Trey started drooling. Trinity giggled at her brother's motionless form. She stared at me for a few minutes, making puppy dog eyes, 'Argh fine!' I exclaimed pulling the photo back out of my bag. Trinity bounced up and down on the seat, clapping her hands in glee. 'This is Jared,' I said handing her the photo. She examined it critically, her eyebrows furrowed, I chuckled under my breath at her facial expression. She sighed, placing the photo on her lap, and then she did something I wasn't expecting. She clipped me across the back of the head.

'Ow what was that for?' I exclaimed, rubbing the spot where she hit me. The expression on her face was a mixture of confusion and fury. 'What are you doing here? You should be doing naughty things to this boy on his bed!' she exclaimed, causing Bonnie and Clyde upfront to look at us in disgust. 'Julia Trinity Moonshine Slade you shouldn't speak of such things, especially not in public!' I whispered furiously, using her full name. 'Two can play at that game Kimberly Lorraine Morgan!' she shot back, I raised an eyebrow.

'Doesn't even matter, because I don't like him in that way,' I grumbled. Trinity laughed in shock, shoving the photo in my face. 'Ha! Your mouth may say one thing but both your eyes and his eyes say different,' I opened my mouth to say something but the insult died on my lips, she was right. A person who I'd known just half an hour was completely and utterly right. 'How come your right and I only met you half an hour ago?' I complained Trinity patted my shoulder comfortingly. 'I don't know Môn Amie, I simply don't know,' she sighed.

We sat in comfortable silence for half an hour. 'Kim are you awake?' she asked nudging me. Trey was peering at me over the front of the seat. I rubbed my eyes I hadn't realised I'd dozed off. 'Oh God sorry, what's going on?' I asked groggily. 'Bus driver's just said we'll be arriving in 20 minutes,' Trey whispered. I yawned into the back of my hand. 'God how long was I asleep for?' I asked I honestly couldn't remember dozing off. Trinity shrugged, pulling a long silver chain out of the neck of her jumper. 'Bout an hour and a half give or take, don't stress about it Kim,' she said, clutching at the silver cross attached to the chain.

I sniggered, 'funny I didn't peg you as the religious type,' I joked, Trey smirked and Trinity threw him a dirty look. 'I'm not really I just feel safer knowing it's there,' she said indignantly, I nodded fair enough. 'What's the deal Kim, have you got a place to stay?' she asked her face concerned. 'Yeah! Ooh that reminds me I have a phone call to make when get there,' Trinity nodded her head this was good enough for her. 'What's your deal, why are you two here?' I asked. Trey coughed and patted the guitar case next to him. 'We're here for a music festival, we're meeting up with the other band members when we get there,' he said.

I nodded, 'that sounds awesome, are you guys performing somewhere?' I asked. 'I'll see if I can get you some tickets right Trey?' Trinity was back to bouncing up and down on the seat again. I shook my head where does the girl get her energy from? I exchanged numbers with Trinity and the three of us had a pleasant conversation about their band. 'What do you play Trin?' I asked my curiosity was alight. 'I'm the drummer,' she said proudly, twirling a drum stick around her fingers.

I laughed, 'You so have to teach me the stick twirling thing,' I exclaimed. 'Fine but you're so teaching me the one eyebrow raised thing,' she said, I spent the next 10 minutes trying to instil in her the art of the one eyebrow raising, but to no avail. The bus pulled up at the depot just as I had managed to spin the drum stick around my fingers. 'Yes! Suck on that!' I exclaimed, doing a Trinity. Trey put his head into his hands and groaned Trinity just glared at him. I shook my head pulling my bag off the floor and pulling my phone out of my pocket.

'Kim are you sure you're gonna be okay?' Trinity asked we were standing on the pavement Trey had already disappeared into the car that was there to get them. 'I'll be fine Trinity,' I promised my new friend giving her a hug. She smiled and skipped over to the car, waving at me as they took off. I sighed and dialled the number of a person that I hadn't spoken to for almost a year and a half. I tried to control the panic as I listened to the phone ring. 'Hello?' a bubbly voice asked I could hear a low thumping in the background most likely the sound of club music. I gulped swallowing the tears that were threatening to spill over.

'Hello is anyone there?' Oh God she sounded drunk. 'Sarah...' I sobbed into the phone as a tear trickled down my cheek. 'Oh My God Kim! What's wrong babe?' she sounded concerned, the thumping noise got lower as she moved to a quieter area of the club. 'Lori grab your stuff we're going!' she yelled to someone on her as I continued to sob into the phone.

'Sarah can you come get me?' I whispered not daring to raise my voice. 'Where are you Kim?' she asked the thumping music disappearing I could hear the click of someone unlocking a car door. 'I'm here...' I trailed off 'That's not helpful Kim!' she chastised. I involuntarily let loose another shuddering sob. 'Where are you Kim?' she repeated I could hear the sound of a car spluttering to life.

'I'm here at the bus depot in Seattle...'

**Ok please don't yell at me I don't live in America so my geography and time limits may be way off! Oh dear poor Kim!**

**Anyway Please Review!**


	18. Chapter 17: My Little Warrior

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Ok I know I said I wasn't gonna do another one of these because you guys didn't like them but I couldn't help it! So I'm doing another chapter from Jared's p.o.v. This one was really hard to write so I want you guys to review and tell me what you think! Come on just one more review and I'll have 45! So please review, Review, REVIEW!**

**Luv Junosphere**

**Ohh and I haven't done one of these for a while but I am NOT Ms Stephenie Meyer **

Chapter 17 – My Little Warrior

She was gone, my Kim, my imprint, my little warrior was gone. She'd been missing a week now and no one has heard anything, it's like she's disappeared off the face of the earth. I was sitting at the dining table in Emily's kitchen staring at a plate of muffins, watching them vanish right in front of me. 'Jared you really should eat something,' Emily was staring at me across the table, trying unsuccessfully to guilt me into eating something. She had a worried look on her face; it looked like she had a permanent crease forming in between her eyebrows. 'No thanks,' I said resting my forehead against the table. The dull ache in my chest was getting worse, and nothing any one did or said made it any better. 'Yeah man eat something this stuff is good,' Quil said around his...I don't know how many muffins he'd eaten I lost count after the fifth.

Happy little punk phased around two days ago and now he wasn't even bothered about the fact that Kim was missing! 'Dude stop moping she'll be back soon enough, its Kim, she'll freak out for a bit then she'll realise she was being stupid and just come home,' Quil said pulling another muffin off the plate. Glaring at him I pushed away from the table, probably using too much force and stalked outside. Emily would kill me if I busted anything, but right now I didn't really care. Bawling my hands into fists I paced around the yard, angry at Quil's brush it off attitude. Argh! None of them got it! No one understood they all pretended they did, but no one did. Pissed off I stalked into the forest, kicking a tree stump that looked like Quil's head.

It ripped out of the ground, roots and all flying through the air til it came into contact with the base of a small sapling causing it to break off. 'Jared!' Emily called out warningly; I scowled at the throbbing in my toe, knowing that it would be gone in a few seconds. I could feel my anger subsiding as I unclenched my hands. Unfortunately that dull ache in my chest was still there always pulsing, always throbbing away in the background, reminding of what I'd lost. Life didn't have any meaning anymore, there was no reason for existing all the points of reason weren't there. I hope I wasn't the reason for her leaving; it had crossed my mind more than once since that confrontation with her parents a few days back...

_... 'Mrs Morgan is there anywhere Kim would go? Any friends she would go stay with?' Sam asked a hard look on his face. The pack, Kim's parents as well as Emily and Sue were all crammed into the Morgan's living room. Kim's little brothers were at the Clearwaters, Leah was supposed to be watching them. Harry and Billy were talking to a cop friend of theirs over at the Forks police station, getting him to check into homeless shelters or missing persons reports in the surrounding area. 'No! Don't you think we would have found her by now if we did! We've called all her friends, rung all our relatives, no one knows where she is!' Kim's mom yelled, sobbing into her husband's shoulder. _

_I put my head in my hands, pushing my fingertips into my temple trying to force out the last pictures I had of Kim, her tear stained but determined face, the hard set of her jaw as she hoped out of my ute, declining my offer to face her parents with her. 'No Jared this is my mess I need to face this myself! Plus I'd rather you meet them under better circumstances,' she said. Then her face softened, she vaulted back onto the seat pressing her lips to my cheek, sending an electrical current across my skin. She pulled away to quickly uncertainty the main feature on her face. 'Bye,' then she was gone. Damn it Jared! I thumped the steering wheel, chucking a major fit. Damn it! Why couldn't I have just turned my head?_

_I shook my head, God this was pointless! Kim wasn't stupid knowing her she was probably far away from here by now. We were wasting time we should be out looking for her! 'Mrs Morgan did she leave a note or a message at all?' Sam asked Emily walked out of kitchen holding a tray laden with cups of tea. She gave Sam a brief smile before distributing them out. Kim's mom blew her nose and looked pointedly at Kim's dad. He sighed pulling a crumpled envelope out of his pocket. 'Do you mind?' Sam asked taking it from him, he shook his head. Sam pulled it out and spread it flat on the coffee table..._

Mom & Dad

I'm sorry for doing this but I can't stay, not knowing what I know now. It's just too hard. Why couldn't you have been honest with me when Gran died, rather than letting it blow up in my face now. Or did you honestly think I'd never find out? Well the cats out of the bag now or should I say wolf? You know you're going to have to tell the twins it involves them now too. And I don't know why but I've got this feeling that Sarah and her little disappearing act is involved as well. How many secrets have you been keeping from me, from all of us? Life would have been a whole lot easier if you'd been straight with us from the start, then I wouldn't be neck deep in this mess.

I don't care what Gran says, I can't do this, I'm not cut out for this position in the tribe. Don't tribal positions go to the boys anyway? Look I'm sorry for hurting you but this is the only thing I can think of doing right now. Especially since I'm now responsible for the pack's 'anger management' issues. I need to get my head together I can't focus on anything right now, there's just too much that's gone wrong. Please tell the twins that I love them and tell them not to worry. Tell the girls not to cry, this situation is hard enough already. Please tell Jared that I'm sorry...

All my love

Kim

_I felt like I'd been sucker punched in the gut and had the breath knocked out of me all at the same. I let out a shuddering breath and ran my hands through my hair. Kim was sorry what did she have to feel sorry for. 'I'm sorry man,' Paul said, gripping my shoulder. I scrapped a hand across my face hoping to rip the skin off. 'What does she mean by _tribal positions_?' Emily asked a confused look on her face. I glanced over at Kim's parents, if it was possible for anyone to go any paler right now I'm fairly sure Kim's mom managed to pull it off. 'My mother, god rest her soul, left Kim her position on the Council and her position amongst the Elders,' Kim's dad's voice sounded dead and hollow, like he was speaking to us from a great distance away. _

_The room was deathly silent. Poor Kim, she was in deeper than anyone realised. 'Do you think that she knew?' Emily broke the silence by asking the question on everyone's minds. 'Of course she knew why do you think she's not here!' I spat, anger starting to boil over. 'Jared calm down!' Sam said warningly. I clenched my fists trying to swallow my anger. Sam looked like he was going to say something else but Kim's dad cut him off. 'Hold on a second Sam, who are you?' he asked pointing a finger at me. _

'_I'm Jared...sir,' I tacked that on as an afterthought. Recognition flashed in Kim's mom's eyes, she hopped of the couch and rushed into the kitchen. All of us had shocked expressions on our faces. 'Ruth what are you looking for?' Sue asked as she and Emily followed her into the kitchen. 'How do you know Kim?' he asked a cross look on his face. How was I supposed to answer that one? 'We all know Kim sir; she's a friend of ours...' Embry trailed off, we looked at him like he was nuts. 'What? I was just trying to help...' he mumbled. _

'_It's alright Embry I know you and Jake of course but she's never mentioned you two,' Kim's dad said gesturing at me and Paul. I exchanged glances with Paul, how was I supposed to tell him that I was in love with his missing daughter? Paul cleared his throat and looked pointedly at me, 'Kim had a run in with Quil on Halloween, Paul and I stepped in to help out,' I said bending the truth slightly. 'Quil as in Quil Atera Jr.? Hmm that was months ago...' Kim's dad had a thoughtful look on his face. Uh oh what had Kim told him about that night? _

_There was a loud bang coming from the kitchen. 'Ruth you really should sit down!' Sue scolded as her and Emily led her out of the kitchen and back to the couch. Kim's dad ignored his wife for a second entirely focused on me. 'What do you know about this?' he asked way too calmly for my liking. I swallowed anger starting to flare up again. 'I only know what Kim has told me and what I have seen for myself Mr Morgan,' I said biting back my anger, Kim had told me her secret and had obviously not given up mine to her parents. He gave a shot hard laugh. 'And what may I ask do you know?' I didn't like his attitude and my anger took advantage of my momentary weakness._

'_What I know is that she is scared, so scared that she has chosen to run from her problems rather than to face them. I may not have been friends with Kim for as long as Jacob or Embry but I know that your daughter is no coward and she is one of the bravest and most fearless people I have ever met. I also know that whatever ever it is she is scared of has something to do with her grandmother, some secret that controlled her life and is now threatening to control Kim's. That Mr Morgan is what I know, but I'm guessing from the look on your face is that you and your family have known for years and obviously not bothered to tell her.' I ran out of steam but I continued shaking with anger. Kim's dad had a gobsmacked look on his face, his mouth flopping open like a fish._

'_WHERE IS MY DAUGHTER?' he thundered surprising everyone by yelling at me, Kim's mom burst into tears again, Emily and Sue trying their hardest to comfort her. 'I DON'T KNOW! MAYBE WE SHOULD START LOOKING ALREADY!' I yelled, shaking even harder I was surprised that I'd managed to hold it together this long. 'That's it Jared outside. NOW!' Sam yelled grabbing me by the scruff of my shirt and dragging me out the door. I didn't try to fight him off. He dragged me into the forest depositing me on a lone stump. 'Now cool it, I know your upset but that is no way to treat your imprint's family! Especially her father!' he said calmly. I tried taking deep breaths, feeling a little better now that I was outside._

'_I can't help it, it just hurts to think about her,' I whispered my voice sounding strangled. Sam laid a hand on my shoulder. 'I know,' he said, there was no inflection in his voice. 'Nice speech though I've never knew you were that articulate,' he laughed chuckling at his own joke. Jeez it must have been bad to get Sam to start cracking jokes, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt and laughed. 'Only when I'm talking about her though,' I countered, but talking to her was another story. I felt him shrug his shoulders. 'True,' he allowed, I let out a breath and rested my head in my hands._

'_Mrs Morgan you should go back inside and talk to your husband,' Sam said. I looked up to see Kim's mom standing at the edge of the forest, holding something in her hands. She nodded her head but continued to walk towards us. 'I know that I just wanted to give you this,' she said, holding what looked like a letter out to me. 'It's from Kim and if I know my daughter like I think I do you must have been very important to her for her to leave you this,' she said, tears starting to pour down her face. Kim had left me a letter? I got off the stump and reached eagerly for the letter, my last link to Kim. 'Thank you Mrs Morgan, you have no idea what this means,' I whispered around the lump forming in my throat. _

_She smiled at me through her tears. 'Nope its Ruth, I think we should be on a first name basis now, given the situation,' I dumbly nodded my head, not knowing what else to say. 'I'm sorry about earlier I was out of line,' I apologised, cradling Kim's letter in my hands, this was more precious than gold. 'Don't be David was being rude, he just can't handle the fact that Kim is growing up and has interests outside of her family and school,' she said raising one eyebrow, so that's where Kim gets it from! After she and Sam left I continued to stare at letter unsure of whether I should open and what it might contain..._

It was this letter that I stared at now, a little crumpled and dog eared but it was still Kim's letter, unopened. I sighed and sat down at the base of a large pine. I had to do it now, I had to know and maybe I could find out where she was. Taking a deep breath I slipped it open to read the words that could possibly break my heart.

_Dear Jared_

_I truly am sorry for doing this to you if there was any way possible that I could stay here I would. I don't really want to leave you but I haven't got another choice. Please don't be sad none of this is your fault and my leaving has nothing to do with what you told me that day at the beach. I am grateful that you told me the truth, the whole truth that took a lot of courage. I'm glad you're being honest especially when I can't tell who's telling the truth and who's lying anymore. Please don't think any less of me for doing this I just need to get my head around what's going on it's just...I can't describe what's going on inside my head it's just crazy. _

_To tell you the true I'm scared of what lies ahead I don't know how I'm going to handle any of this. I'm not a leader no matter what Gran says and I'm certainly no neutraliser that's for sure. I'm sorry I'm probably not making much sense my emotions are all over the place at the moment... _The writing was slightly smudged maybe she'd started crying?_ ...I can't stay here not knowing that I'm failing everyone I love over and over again. I'm failing Gran because I'm not doing my 'job', I failed you and the rest of the pack because I couldn't stop you from changing into werewolves and I'm on the verge of failing the twins because I can't stop the change that's already occurring. It's just better for everyone if I disappear for a while. _

_I hate to ask but I don't know what else to do. Can you please watch over the twins? I know I'm asking a lot but I'm begging you, I don't know how I'd cope if anything ever happened to them. I don't know if I'll be back so for now I'll say goodbye and say something I should have said two years ago._

_I love you..._

_Kim_

She loved me. I quickly read the last few sentences to make sure I'd read it right. Kim was in love with me! I couldn't believe it; most imprints normally freak out and try to ignore it but even after I'd told her she still had the strength to tell me she loved me. 'Jared is something wrong?' Emily was standing next to the tree; I'd been so engrossed in Kim's letter that I hadn't noticed her approach. She looked slightly confused as I sprang up off the ground. 'She loves me Em. SHE LOVES ME!' I crowed laughing in shock. I showed Emily the letter tears pooling in her eyes as she read it. 'Go get her Jared, go get our girl and bring her home,' she said pushing me into the forest. Like I needed any encouragement as I ran off into the forest, phasing into wolf form and headed to find the start of the trail that would lead me to Kim.


	19. Chapter 18: This is an Intervention

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Yay people 4 reviews for the last chapter, I'm a very happy person right now, you guys are absolutely awesome! I love reviews, I love reading what you guys think even if it's just to say how much I suck! Ok back to Kim's POV for this chapter and I've added an unknown POV too so please review and tell me what you think! I had a hard time writing this chapter, just a mixture of severe writer's block and the stress of being a Yr 12. So please be patient with me! Also I sought of had a playlist for this chapter so I'm gonna add it in here **

**Playlist **

**Need You Now – Lady Antebellum Total Eclipse of the Heart – Glee Version When You're Gone – Avril Lavinge Sugarcane – Missy Higgins I Dreamed A Dream – Glee Version **

**Anyway happy reading!**

**Luv Juno**

Chapter 18 – This is an Intervention!

I continued to stare at my ringing phone, my heart was telling me to answer it, my brain was saying I should answer it, but my stubbornness and anger was stopping me. The annoying ringtone kept going until it finally stopped. My phone flashed a few seconds later telling me I had a new voice mail message. I hesitantly picked it up and listened to just one in a long stream of voice mail messages I'd been listening to for two straight weeks. _'Kimmy please come home we all miss you, whatever crap that's going on with your parents the four of us can fix it together, just please come home hun ...Click!'_ I drew in a shuddering breath, tears streaming down my face.

I don't know how long I sat there sobbing my broken heart out. This wasn't the first pleading phone call I'd received; Mom rang nonstop for the first two days I hadn't heard from her for a while I guess she'd given up on me. Dad rang every few days he stopped sounding angry and starting sounding quite sad. Listening to the twins begging me to come home was hard Dan sounded like he was going to cry and Isaac sounded so hopeless, it just shattered my heart into tiny fragments. Bek, Eve and Deb would all ring at the same time so I would end with some half baked message sounding something like...

_Italics – Bek _Underlined – Eve **Bold - Deb**

'_Kim would you just_...**get your butt back down to La Push**...Don't yell at her Deb..._Come home_...we miss you...**I'm gonna kick your arse when you get back**...Deb!...**what!**..._Stop yelling at her..._**what she needs to come home**...we miss you babe..._we'll see you soon_...**We're coming to get you soon**..._**Bye babe!**__'_...

Their messages made me laugh and cry at the same time, I missed them like crazy! But the hardest messages to listen to were from Jared, he sounded so...words cannot describe the emotions in his voice, he sounded like his was slowly dying from the inside out, it made me feel so guilty every time he rang. Knowing that he was hurting just as much as I was made me feel even worse, because I knew that I was the cause. My resolve wavered every time I listened to his voice messages, being away from him grew harder and harder as the days passed. That little tug was not only getting stronger and harder to ignore but it was becoming quite painful as well. Like part of me was missing, like someone had ripped my heart out of my chest and just started squeezing it. It just hurt so much.

My moment of sorrow was disturbed by a soft knock at the door. 'Kim babe, me and Sarah were just gonna go down to the...' Lori stopped midway through her sentence. She sighed shaking her head, this wasn't the first time her or Sarah had discovered me bawling my eyes; almost anything set me off nowadays. She crossed the room, gently pulling the phone from my grasp and wrapping me in a comforting hug, rubbing my back as I started to calm down. Lori was just awesome; there are just no other words to describe her. Lori became Sarah's best friend when we first moved to Seattle about 8 years ago. They hit it off on Sarah's first day, Lori verbally arse-kicked some snooty racist cow who was heckling Sarah about being Native American and they'd been besties ever since.

Lori was one of the most outrageous people I'd ever met; she was smart, funny and had a wicked sense of humour. However Lori was one of those types of people you didn't want to fuck with, get on her bad side and you might want to start sleeping with one eye open, as snooty racist cow found out. But to me Lori was like another sister, her parents weren't around all that much so Lori always used to spend the holidays with us, Mom and Dad used to call her Daughter No. 3. My breathing started to calm down as I remembered better times. 'All better?' She asked giving me a tentative smile. I nodded wiping my face with my left hand. 'Who rang this time?' She asked putting my phone on the bedside table, out of my reach.

'Bek but this time she rang on her own, I think something's happened,' I croaked, swiping at a stray tear on my cheek. Lori nodded handing me a tissue. 'Look Sarah and I were gonna go down to the DVD hire place and I _was_ going to ask if you want to come, but now I think I'm gonna just make you come,' she said, the twinkle in her eyes daring me to protest against the arrangement. I threw her a dirty look, she frowned at me. 'Don't you give me that Kimberly, you haven't left this house in over two weeks, you are coming with us whether you like it or not!' she reprimanded, pointing at the door. I sighed looking down at what I was wearing. 'Give me five minutes,' I said shuffling off the bed and over the wardrobe.

'Alright then five minutes, no more!' she said, marching out of the room. I chuckled under my breath, something I hadn't done for a while. Two minutes later I was dressed in a clean pair of jeans and a long sleeved shirt. I was pulling a brush through my knotted curls, looking around the room for that clean pair of socks I'd thrown somewhere in one of my hysterical sobbing fits a few days previously. 'Hurry up Kim you've got 2 minutes!' Lori yelled. I shook my head and hopped over to the door, pulling a sock on my foot. 'Alright, alright and I've got 3 minutes you can't count!' I hollered into the hallway.

Sarah's laughter floated up the stairs followed closely by the sound of a large slap. 'Ouch hey!' she protested. I rolled my eyes as they started arguing, pulling on my other sock. Two minutes later I meandered down the stairs to find Sarah holding Lori in a headlock, whilst tugging on her long red hair. **(A/N: Think Haley Williams...)** I cleared my throat, they both turned to look at me with matching gobsmacked expressions. 'Do I want to know?' I cocked my head, an amused smile gracing my face. They quickly readjusted themselves and proceeded to usher me out the door.

'What about this one?' I asked holding up Daybreakers. Sarah wrinkled her nose and grimaced at my choice. 'Nuh Uh, too scary,' she said, flouncing over to the rom – com section, convinced we didn't have enough chick flicks. I exchanged glances with Lori as she took the DVD from me hiding it amongst our other choices, which so far consisted of Alice in Wonderland, Casanova (Sarah is in love with Heath Ledger) and The Ugly Truth. I wandered around the DVD store, barely glancing over the titles. Sarah was concentrating really hard as she wandered through the rom – com section with Lori following her close behind, talking her out of her rather smutty choices.

My thoughts returned back to Jared, despite Lori and Sarah's best attempts to get me to forget about what was going on back home he was always in the fore front of my mind, showing up in my dreams or more recently my nightmares. The first night after I'd run away Lori and Sarah woke to find me screaming like I was in copious amounts of pain. I blatantly refused to tell them about my nightmare, vowing not to scream no matter how terrifying the dream was. And they got worse, my nightmares being filled with red and gold coloured eyes, the cloaked figures of my parents, my loving mother holding a blood stained dagger, Jared being tortured, Jared in lots of unnecessary pain. All the while hearing the voices of my brothers and my friends chanting _'It's all your fault, it's your fault we're suffering,' _

I shook my head not wanting to breakdown in the middle of the DVD store. 'Yay I found it!' Sarah shrieked gleefully jumping up and down, clutching a copy of the Titanic. I stifled a groan rushing over to help a clearly exasperated Lori. 'Sarah, why?' I whinged as she did a rather embarrassing happy dance. I seriously have no idea how we are related. 'Come on Kim, its Kate and Leo!' she crowed jumping up and down like a five year old. 'Sarah, you borrowed that one last time!' Lori grumbled, frustration colouring her tone.

I quickly scanned the shelves for something to distract her with. 'Oooh! What about this one! It's got Heath Ledger in it!' I said in a singsong voice, swinging 10 Things I Hate About You in front of her face. Her eyes glazed over as she watched me swing the DVD in front of her face. Finally she sighed placing Titanic back on the shelf and snatching 10 Things I Hate About You from my grip. Lori gave me a relieved look. 'Thank you!' she mouthed as we crossed over to where Sarah was standing looking animatedly at Heath Ledger's face on the covers of both DVDs. Thankfully she hadn't discovered Daybreakers yet.

The song being played in the store ended switching straight to Need You Now by Lady Antebellum. Lori noticed the heartbroken look on my face as we crossed to the counter. I could feel the tears pooling in my eyes, the lyrics striking a chord somewhere deep inside my shattered heart. The song could have basically described my life right now, I needed him and I was pretty sure this situation worked both ways so he needed me too. I dropped the DVD's into a shocked Sarah's hands fleeing the store and the song that was tearing me apart...

_It's a quarter after one, I'm all alone and I need you now... _

I stumbled blindly out to the car, sobbing as I crashed into the door and slid down the side so I ended up crouched next to the wheel. 'Come on sweetie get up,' Sarah urged pulling me off the floor and depositing me on the backseat, hopping in after me. Lori dumped the DVD's in the passenger's seat and drove off. Sarah pulled into one of her comforting big sister hugs, whispering to me that it was going to be all right as I continued to sob into her shirt.

'Ugh I don't know why you picked that one Kim that was awful!' Sarah groaned removing her hands from her face. From the opening credits, Sarah had watched the entire movie from in between her fingers. I snorted and Lori rolled her eyes in my direction. After reading Gran's book on vamps (which I'm fairly sure is scarier) I was fairly sure I'd never look at a movie about bloodsuckers in the same light. Gran was right Hollywood had gotten it very wrong. 'Well pick something else then! Kim pass me that bag of sour worms,' now it was Sarah's turn to roll her eyes as she untangled herself from the nest she'd made on the couch.

I'd claimed the recliner chair and was rugged up under some blankets and cushions, I felt very warm, but it was nothing compared to how warm Jared was. Lori was sprawled out on the floor; she made herself a fort out of several large cushions she'd stolen off the couch and a huge mink blanket. She'd also been sorting out the lollies into groups on a tray, obviously getting ready to make her famous lolly skewers. I laughed as Sarah fell off the couch and proceeded to crawl across the floor to the DVD player. My laughter sounded off; very light and superficial despite the fact that Sarah falling off the couch had been very funny.

I noticed Lori giving me a look, the kind that said _hide the knives from the crazy lady!_ 'What!' I asked as Sarah slotted Casanova into the DVD player. The look fell from Lori's face, returning her attention to the groups of lollies on the floor. 'Nothing,' she said sheepishly, avoiding eye contact. I let it go tossing her the bag of sour gummi worms. Watching her sort through them with fascinated precision. My thoughts shifted back to Jared for the umpteenth time today, I wonder what he's doing right now? Would he be at home asleep? Would he be running around in wolf form with the others? Would he be thinking about me? Would he be worried? Would he be searching for me?

I shook myself, don't be so egotistical Kim! Jared's probably fine and probably not thinking about how you are! I mentally berated myself for being so stupid. I left him; I hurt him, why should he be thinking about me at all! Especially after that bombshell I dropped. I'd read up on that as well and it explained a lot of things that I'd noticed about how quickly the werewolves I'd come into contact with calmed down so quickly and why the twins hadn't phased yet. 'Kimikaze do you want one?' Lori yelled using an old nickname from when we were kids. She was waving a skewer in front of my face. I quickly took it from her before she could notice anything was wrong. Settling in and trying desperately to pay attention to the movie.

**(?POV)**

I watched as Kim tossed and turned in her sleep, tugging the blanket up under her chin. She wasn't screaming, which was a relief. For the first time in days I could openly look at her without having her catch me staring. She looked gaunt and her normally glowing russet skin looked pale and washed out. There were large purple bags under her eyes, which instead of being their brilliant vibrant green, looked lifeless and dead. Watching Kim's eyes was like watching a tree shrivel up and die right in front of you. We didn't ask about what happened in order for her to want to come here the only thing we got from her was on the first night when she blubbered something about everyone lying to her for the past 16 years of her life.

I crawled out of my fort and quietly crept upstairs, not wanting to wake her up. I snuck into Kim's room; it looked like a bomb had gone off. Furniture had been tipped over, clothes and bedding had been strewn all over the floor and several pillows had been destroyed, I wonder if this is what it looked like inside Kim's mind? I tiptoed across the floor avoiding the creaky spots and snatched Kim's phone off the one piece of furniture that hadn't been tipped over. Gliding out of the room and back down stairs I shook Sarah's shoulder jerking my head towards the kitchen, she silently glanced at Kim who was still sleeping before following me.

There were four missed calls on Kim's phone; I exchanged uneasy glances with Sarah. She didn't like this anymore than I did, but this was an intervention, Kim couldn't go on like this it was killing her slowly. And if she wasn't going to talk to us then she needed to talk to someone who loved her as much as we do. I felt bad for invading Kim's privacy but we had to do something. She had missed two calls from someone called Bek, one call from someone called Deb and one call from an unknown number. I noticed confusion on Sarah's face as I pressed the replay button for the four missed calls.

Call No.1

'_Kimmy please, please, please come home! Something terrible has happened, but you need to come home! Please hun! Please! ...Click'_

Call No. 2

'_Kimberly Lorraine Morgan!_ You need to come home right now! _We can't deal with this by ourselves!_ We're still looking for him! _But we don't know where he is!_ Please hun come home only you can get through to him! _...Click!'_

Call No. 3

'**Kim I don't know if you got Bek and Eve's message but you need to come home! Right now! Jared is missing! And if you love him like I know you do you will get your butt back down here and start looking for him! ...Click!'**

I exchanged looks with Sarah. 'Who's Jared?' I asked with confusion. Sarah pressed pause before disappearing upstairs, seconds later she returned holding a photograph, one I had seen Kim clutching when we brought her here that first night. 'I'm guessing because I haven't seen him for a year that this is Jared,' she said pointing at the totally gorgeous young man rolling around on the grass with her in the photo. 'Whoa she's got good taste!' I exclaimed, we both froze hearing noise coming from the living room. We breathed a sigh of relief when we realised that she hadn't woken up or started screaming. Sarah nodded her head in agreement. 'Yeah she's had a major crush on him for two years but she's never done anything about it, until now,' she said gesturing at the photo.

I pressed the play button again wondering if the unknown number was this Jared kid Kim was interested in, but then again she would have his number wouldn't she?

'Hello Kim, this is Deana Thail, I'm Jared's mom. Look I'm sorry we've never met but from the way my son has spoken about you I feel as if I know you already. I know you've probably heard this a thousand times, but you do really need to come home. I don't know exactly what is going on but my son is missing and I've no idea where he is. I'm begging you to please come home...don't ask me why but I've have a feeling that he'll show up once you come back. Forgive me for asking this of you, but I miss my son, he is all I have left...Click!'

I exchanged horrified expressions with Sarah as we sat there registering what she had said. 'What do we do now?' she whispered, listening to the quiet sound of Kim's breathing. I shushed her and quickly scanned through Kim's contact list down to Jared's number. 'What are you doing?' Sarah asked furiously, trying to grab the phone from my hand as I pressed the call button. She glared at me but came to stand next to me, trying to listen in. _'Kim!'_ yelled a worried voice. Sarah jumped knocking over a bar stool, I quickly reached out to grab it before it crashed onto the floor. I shot her worried look before returning my attention to Jared on the other end of the phone.

'Sorry I'm not Kim, but I do know where she is!' I said hurriedly, not wanting him to hang up. _'Is she safe? Is she alright?'_ he asked, voice cracking with worry. I glanced at Sarah, she shrugged her shoulders, how was I supposed to answer without lying? 'She's safe, we've been looking after her,' I placated, half answering the question. From just listening to him speak, he sounded like he was in as much pain as Kim is. _'Is she alright?'_ he asked again in a small voice. Sarah looked at me worriedly. I started chewing on my bottom lip.

'No she's not,' I whispered, I could see tears pooling in Sarah's eyes, her expression mirroring my own. 'How fast can you get down here?' I asked before he could have a chance to reply. _'That all depends where _here_ is,' _he said in a determined voice. 'We're in Seattle, 482 Ipswich Ave **(A/N: I don't live in Seattle, so I don't any street names!)**,' I said hoping it wouldn't take him too long. _'What's the time now?' _'It's around 11,' I said glancing at the clock.

It was a tense few seconds but I could hear some shuffling on his end of the phone, Sarah looked nervous she'd started biting her fingernails. '_I'll be there by 2, 1:30 if there are no cops,'_ he said, I immediately started grinning and Sarah started jumping up and down. 'Ok we'll see you then!' I said hanging up. I breathed a sigh of relief as Sarah sagged against the bench, letting it take her weight. 'So now we wait,' she said gazing at the clock. I nodded, peeking into the living room to see Kim still asleep, her breathing grew easier and there was a small smile on her face. It was almost as if she knew he was coming. I turned back to Sarah. 'Yup and now we wait.'

**Review peoples!**


	20. Chapter 19: Gotta Face the Music

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Hey peoples! Thank you for your reviews I got 6 for the last chapter which is an achievement in itself, so I thank you for your continued patience with this stressed out Yr 12 who is on the verge of exams! Ah scary I only have less than 10 weeks left of actual school before I graduate and head to uni! *Cue Jaws Theme Music* AHHH! Okay on a serious note I've been reading lots of smut and other Kared fan fics so I can get this bit just right for you guys! So please review and tell me how I go! Luv Juno **

Chapter 19 - Gotta Face the Music

I woke the next morning to find myself still in the armchair from last nights. I blinked blearily at my surroundings; Lori had demolished her pillow fort literally! There were feathers and lollies everywhere Sarah's nest literally looked like a nest as it too was covered in feathers and splinters of wood which I assumed was the remnants of the lolly skewers from last night. I could hear a low buzz emanating from the kitchen accompanied by the sounds of someone cussing rather loudly, probably Lori. Perhaps they had company? I creakily got out of the armchair and stretched, bones cracking. The buzzing in the other room ceased, I wasn't feeling too worried as I stumbled into the kitchen, not fully awake and rubbing sleep out of my eyes. Boy was I in for a shock!

Lori was standing next to the stove trying to cook something which was a feat in itself; Sarah was leaning against the bench laughing at her attempts as there were several pans in the sink and sitting on a bar stool watching the whole scene with an amused expression on his face was Jared. Well my morning just went from fuzz to BOING in a matter of seconds. I blinked several times to make sure I hadn't just dreamed him there I even pinched myself for good measure. Nope he was still sitting there in all his muscled glory. I just stood there drinking in the sight of him, my eyes raked over his body, up towards his face. I desperately wanted him to be real, to be here in my sisters' kitchen in Seattle.

My breath caught in my throat when my eyes met his, shocked by what I saw. His skin looked drawn and slack against the frame of his face and there were large purple bags under his eyes. He looked like he could do with a decent feed and a decent sleep. I just stood there and continued staring at him, in another life I might have felt slightly embarrassed for publicly ogling him but I hadn't seen him for 2 weeks so sue me. I drank in every contour of his handsome face, memorising the expressions that flashed in his eyes. That dead look instantly became recognition, then joy, then hurt, then anger, then intense sadness and finally he settled on a halfway neutral expression trying to keep his emotions in check. I felt a tear trickle out the corner of my eye, feeling terribly guilty. Knowing I was responsible for that detached look on his face.

My guilty musings were interrupted by the smell of hot metal and burning eggs. 'Lori! The pan!' I yelled sprinting across the room to turn the stove off. Grabbing the pan off the stove I dumped it in the sink quickly turning on the tap. Steam started hissing off the pan filling the area around me with thick white smoke. 'Bloody hell Lori! Pay attention next time!' I scolded turning in time to see a flash of red hair and russet skin disappear around the corner and out of sight. I scowled slightly shaking my head. 'Bugger!' I whispered under my breath, planting my hands on my hips in annoyance. Great now I had to clean up Lori's mess, as usual.

I turned back to the sink only to run smack bang into Jared, running straight into his massive torso; shrieking in shock. If he hadn't grabbed the tops of my arms I probably would have fallen flat on my arse. My breathing picked up at his close proximity and I could feel my heart racing away in my chest. I continued to stare at his torso tracing the contours with my eyes, refusing to look up at him fearing what I might see. I felt his hands slip down my arms and come to a stop on my waist; I could feel the heat from his hands searing my skin (in a good way!) through the thin material of my tank top. I was suddenly well aware of the fact that I was still in last night's tank top and shorts combo which wasn't really leaving much for Jared to imagine.

I suddenly realised the water was still running and starting to flow over the top of the sink. 'Oh shit!' I yelled, ripping myself from Jared's arms to turn the tap off. Shit I've gone and flooded the kitchen way to go Kim! I pulled the pan Lori has soldered the eggs onto out of the sink, filling it with water before placing it back on the stove to simmer. No way was I gonna be spending my morning scrapping burnt eggs off of a frying pan. Especially when I had more important things to think about, namely Jared. I swiped a cloth off the bench chucking it onto the floor trying to soak up the water. The process of soaking up the water then wringing out the cloth in the sink was a great way to keep my hands and eyes busy, but allowed my mind to roam.

I was acutely aware of the fact that Jared watching me or more specifically my arse, which as mentioned before was still covered in last night's shorts. I could feel my cheeks burning in embarrassment knowing I probably looked really ridiculous. On my tenth cloth ringing out I heard the sound of another cloth plopping onto the floor. Out the corner of my eye I could see Jared working away on the floor. I shook myself realising I was staring at him again. There wasn't much water left on the floor so we finished rather quickly. Now it was time to face Lori's mess in the sink. I sighed plugging the hole and turning the tap on. I searched in the cupboard under the sink for the detergent squeezing a generous amount of the yellow liquid in the sink before tossing it back in the cupboard.

I watched as the sink filled with bubbles and water, turning off the tap before we had another Niagara Falls in Lori and Sarah's kitchen. I looked around for a tea towel only to find that it was on the other side of the room. I carefully crossed the damp floor grabbing it off the other bench; I turned around shocked to find Jared had taken up my post at the sink. I cocked an eyebrow, well I never figured Jared for a dish man. I kept that in mind as I started drying the first pan Jared had washed before storing it in one of Lori's cupboards. We worked in silence; neither one of us wanting to start the inevitable conversation.

I honestly had no idea where to start especially when I had no idea what kind of explanation he wanted from me. Did he want to know why I left? Did he for some strange reason think he was to blame? Did he want to know more about _wince_ neutralisers? (Still don't like that word!) I huffed out a breath as I took another piece of crockery off the draining board. Jared shot me a look which I tried desperately to ignore. Yes I know you can just go ahead and say it, I am a coward... There's no point in denying it. I hopped up onto the bench to stack a couple of plates I'd dried into one of the top cupboards. As I went to shut the door my balance decided now would be the perfect time to give way.

I shrieked as my grip slipped off the cupboard door which decided to swing shut. I was expecting to crash onto the tiled floor and crack open my skull; I tensed myself for the impact hoping it wouldn't hurt too much. What I wasn't expecting was to be caught, to be cradled in someone's arms, warm arms; _Jared's_ warm arms. I blinked up into his face; he was standing right under the ceiling light so it was casting a haloish – light around his already heavenly face. 'Kim, are you okay?' he asked, his voice so low I almost missed it. I visibly gulped, could he have asked a more difficult question? Physically I was fine other than a lack of sleep but mentally...that was a minefield I wasn't ready to go through.

'If you're asking about the fall then yes I'm okay, but if you're asking about...' I trailed off seeing the hurt flash in his eyes. I bit down on my bottom lip knowing the situation was becoming increasingly awkward. 'Can you put me down now?' I asked in a small voice. At that moment I needed space, I needed boundaries, I needed to focus. Jared's arms tightened around my small frame. He blew out a long breath before sitting me beck on the bench I'd just fallen off of trapping me there by placing his hands on either side of my body. We stared at each other for several minutes, neither one of us willing to break the silence first.

It was too much for me. 'What do you want me to say Jared? That I'm fine with the fact that I've been lied to my whole life? That I'm fine with you putting yourself in danger every night of the week? That I'm fine with the fact that my baby brothers could be part of that?' I said brokenly, dropping my face into my hands, showing him my true fears. He said nothing he just pulled me into his chest and held me as I cried the names of my friends and family pouring out in an endless stream of grief and guilt. He rubbed soothing circles into my back, tracing warm patterns across my skin. I pulled my hands away from my face and wrapped my arms around his shoulders as he pulled me closer to his body. I felt warmer and safer than I had in weeks.

'I'm sorry,' I muttered once my sobs had subsided, he pulled back a confused look on his face.

'For what?' his eyebrows pulled up at the centre, he was frowning at me. I wiped my face with the back of my hand.

'For everything, for running away, for being coward, for hurting everyone, for hurting you...' I trailed off fixing him with a sheepish look. His frown deepened.

'You're not a coward Kim.'

'Yes I am.'

'No you're not.'

'Am.'

'Not.'

'Are too,'

'Are not,'

'Are you seriously gonna do this with me?'

'Yup!' he said popping the 'p'. I folded my arms over my chest looking like a petulant child. He just stood there and smirked, still trapping me on the bench.

'Can you move so I can get down?' I asked, shimmying closer to the edge of the bench. He just continued smirking at me, his eyes travelling up and down my body sending an involuntary shiver through me. Damn! What was this boy doing to me? He sighed and moved his hands off the bench. Yes! I grinned triumphantly shimmying closer to the edge of the bench, getting ready to jump off when he trapped my waist his massive hands. Damn it! I never realised just how big his hands were before! I wonder if there's any stock in the saying that the length of a man's hands determined the length of his...Ahem! I blushed at my train of thought, avoiding Jared's eyes just in case he managed to decipher what I was thinking.

I looked at the stack of dirty dishes in the sink, trying to lessen the colour slowly rising in my face. Oh God this was so embarrassing! 'Kim, please look at me,' he sighed, took a peak at him out of the corner of my eye. Damn it he was pouting at me! It was my turn to sigh as I looked at him, wondering how this God in mortal form could ever have been meant for me. Needless to say it was a shock when his lips touched mine. It was barely a brush at first, both testing to gauge my reaction and teasing. I swear all my nerve endings burst into flame from the slight contact, the same way they had after he walked into that English room after his two week absence.

I let slip an involuntary moan of pleasure which was all the encouragement he needed to deepen the kiss. I wrapped my legs around his waist as his arms formed an inescapable snare around my own, both of us needing to close the distance. He expressed everything in that kiss; longing, frustration, passion, pain but I could feel a lot of love in that kiss. I tangled my hands in his short hair, not an easy feat I must say but I managed it, using it as leverage to pull him closer to me. 'Well I think that's quite enough of that!' announced an amused voice. Oh SHIT! I pulled back immediately, breaking all contact with Jared. I saw Lori leaning against the door frame with Sarah standing in the shadows, looking as mortified as I felt.

Fuck Lori; fuck Sarah, fuck, fuck, FUCK! 'You are the devil incarnate Lori Anne Rhiannon Kingston and you will burn in hell!' I said in a deadly voice, fixing her with my best 'fuck off' glare. Jared chuckled nervously at my outburst, planting a small kiss on my collarbone, which immediately made my insides all gooey. 'I think we should keep him around, don't you agree Sare? He's the perfect antidote to Kimikaze's mood swings,' she said studying her fingernails without a care in the world. That's it she's gonna die. I think Jared read the look on my face because he planted another feather light kiss on my collarbone before tipping me over his shoulders and walking sedately out of the kitchen.

'Go up the stairs and it's the second door on the left,' Sarah said to Jared, pulling Lori out of reach of my hands. I continued to protest about being carried up the stairs like a sack of potatoes by pounding my fists on his back and kicking him in the stomach, which he did not thank me for. It wasn't until we reached my room that I was finally dumped unceremoniously on my bed. I scooted off the bed toward the door however Jared beat me there locking the door and standing in front of it. I folded my arms across my chest and for the second time that day looked like a petulant child. I finally gave in and marched back over to the bed and sat in the middle of it.

Jared joined me about 5 minutes later when he was sure I wasn't gonna make a break for the door. He lay down on the bed pulling me with him; I scooted close to his side resting my head on his chest. He wrapped a warm muscled arm around my shoulder securing me to his body. 'I missed you, very badly,' I said after a moment's silence. I shifted slightly so I could look at his face which was an odd combination of joy and sadness. He chuckled softly. 'Well that's good because I missed you too,' he said quietly. I ducked my head hiding a smile glad at the thought that he missed me too. 'Did it hurt?' I asked looking him square in the face and seeing confusion. 'Did missing me hurt?' I asked again, clarifying what I wanted.

'Yes it did, right about here,' he said placing my hand over his heart; I could feel the steady beat under my hand. I instantly felt horrible over the fact that I'd caused him so much pain.

'I guess the imprint really does go both ways,' I said solemnly, tracing the lines of Jared's palms. His only reaction was to hold me closer.

'Promise me one thing...' he trailed off. I nodded swiftly; he released my hand in exchange for my chin titling my head up so I could meet his eyes. 'Promise me that you'll never leave me again!' he said, managing to sound both soft and fierce at the same time. I shivered at the intensity in his voice, knowing whether I promised or not I would never ever be leaving him again.

'I promise, although maybe next time you can come with me!' I joked reaching up to press a kiss on his smiling lips, which I instantly deepened locking my arms around his neck. His response was eager locking his arms around my waist he definitely wanted to finish off what we started in the kitchen. This kiss was even more passionate then the first believe it or not, thank god he locked the door! 'Oi you two keep it down up there! You can do that on your own time!' Lori yelled as she continued hitting the floor beneath us or the ceiling above her whichever it was with the handle of a broom. Did they even own a broom? I pulled back, rolling off Jared onto my side of the bed.

We were both breathing heavily; he had a silly love struck grin on his face. 'I can't believe her! She's impossible!' I groaned hiding my face in Jared's side. He laughed freely and kissed the top of my head. 'I think she's jealous,' I said my voice muffled slightly.

'And why do you think that?' he asked amusement the focal point of his tone. I shushed him by placing a finger on his lips; I flashed him a cheeky grin before silently creeping off the bed toward the door. I pressed my ear to the locked door hearing the sounds of two pairs of feet creeping up the stairs.

I pressed my hand against my mouth, trying to stifle my giggles. I beckoned him towards me pointing at the door and letting a small giggle loose. He quickly and silently hopped off the bed pressing his ear against the door. I could feel his silent laughs, creating vibrations through the floorboards. 'You know why I think she's jealous?' I yelled loudly into the door. The footsteps stopped and I could hear Lori shushing Sarah. Jared's face was turning red from trying desperately to keep his laughter quiet. 'Tell me,' he said catching onto my idea. We were both clutching our sides, completely in agony. 'Well I'm guessing it's because she hasn't had decent SEX in 6 months, especially since her last boyfriend was so ANAL!' I yelled through the door.

'YOU BITCH! YOU UNLOCK THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW OR SO HELP ME GOD!' Lori screamed as she proceeded to beat down the door. I jumped away from the door, falling in a heap on the carpet as I let loose the laughter I been holding in. Jared was leaning heavily against the wall; tears were running down his face his own laughter shaking the floorboards. I could just hear over the sounds of our laughter and Lori's pounding, the sound of another set of laughter belonging to Sarah. 'Shut up! It's not FUNNY!' Lori yelled in disdain at Sarah who was still laughing as hard as we were.

'You...were the idiot...who...decided to...Ha ha!' Sarah choked out between peals of laughter.

I'm guessing from the lack of noise from Lori that she was now glaring at Sarah, hands on hips and nostrils flaring. Actually I wouldn't be surprised if she had smoke pouring out her ears. That thought brought on a fresh round of laughter. A few minutes later Lori stomped away from the door and back downstairs Sarah followed once she'd recovered although I could still hear her chuckling. I took a deep breath trying to expel my giggles; Jared had slid down the wall and was now sprawled out on the floor. He had a slightly worried look on his face, huffing out a sigh. 'We need to talk Kim,' he said softly, shattering the quiet moment. I rubbed my eyes, his words sobering up my mood.

'I know,' I said quietly, looking down at my hands. Here comes the hard part. I forced myself to crawl across the floor towards the bed pulling my duffel out from underneath it. I rummaged around pulling out the old photo album and the four books Gran had left me along with her last letter. 'What do you want to talk about first?' I asked sliding the books across the floor towards him.

'How do you feel about the whole situation?' he asked, I cocked my head in confusion. 'I mean me being a werewolf,' he whispered.

'I'm fine with you being a werewolf Jared, it doesn't bother me as much as it used to, especially after reading this...' I slide the blue book across the floor towards him. He picked it up looking at the contents page.

'You're Gran knew about the Cullens?' he asked, a dumbstruck look on his face.

'Yeah she's actually met them; they're described in great detail,' I said wrinkling my nose, Jared laughed at my facial expression.

'Can you really hear each other's thoughts?' I asked, awe colouring my tone. He laughed again closing the book.

'Only in wolf form but yeah, it's good for when we need to coordinate positions or for sharing information, but it's pain because there's no such thing as privacy or secrets anymore,' he shot me his own sheepish glance. I blushed furiously obviously the other wolf boys knew how he felt about me.

'What colour is your fur?' I asked, changing the subject. He shot me a grateful look.

'Dark brown,' I nodded remembering the rich colour from my dreams.

'Whose fur is black?' I asked remembering my encounter in the woods all those months ago.

'Sam, he's very sorry about scaring you, he didn't mean for you to hurt yourself.'

'Ah that's okay I'm over it! How big is the pack now?' I asked, wondering if anyone had made the change in my absence.

'There are 6 of us now,'

'Quil's the new recruit then,'

'Yeah how did you know?'

I shot him a sheepish smile. 'I read the signs; I'm actually quite surprised it took him this long, especially after what I put him through,' I started pulling at the carpet. The bruise the exact shape of Quil's hand was still wrapped around my arm but was slowly fading; it was a brown colour now hardly noticeable against my russet coloured skin.

'It's okay he understands now and I know he feels bad about that,' he said gesturing at my arm. I nodded, of course he would that was so typical Quil.

'Why were you so shocked about Gran knowing the Cullens?' I asked remembering his reaction.

'Oh nothing it's just that they were the ones who signed the treaty with the original pack,'

'I know Gran was there, I suppose she was just there to keep the peace. You know she was Levi Uley's daughter?'

'Really!'

'Yeah I guess that makes Sam my cousin or something,' I said pulling a hand through my hair only to have it get stuck. I made a face at Jared and moved to grab my hairbrush off the dresser.

'How do you feel about finding out you're a neutraliser?' he asked as I pulled the brush through my unruly curls.

'I'm still not used to it; it's like discovering a limb I never knew I had. It's so confusing because I don't know whether I like it,' I explained, glancing at the mirror across the room catching a glimpse of my eyes. 'I'm finding it hard to look at my reflection to tell you the truth.' I set the brush back down before crossing the floor to sit next to Jared. He instantly pulled me into his lap.

'You know I'm always here for you, we're in this together now,' he said gruffly, planting a kiss on my forehead. I nodded into his chest letting the warmth radiating from him engulf me.

I felt him tense slightly; I pulled myself away so I could look at his face. He looked insanely nervous. 'How do you feel about me imprinting on you?' he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. I sighed and reached out to grab the light green book. I quickly skimmed through it finally finding the page I was looking for. 'When you told me I honestly didn't know whether to feel insulted or ecstatic,' he flinched at my choice of words. 'And then I felt bad because I thought you were basically getting your choices taken away from you, I felt like you were being forced to care about me.' He looked at me fiercely opening his mouth to protest. 'Hold on I'm not done! But then I read this which is Gran's theory of imprinting...'

_...Imprinting is more than just finding your soul mate or a viable candidate to produce stronger, larger wolves. It speeds up the inevitable; imprinting allows the werewolf in question to find his perfect match. Instead of bumbling around for years and going through several dud relationships before discovering the right one, imprinting sidesteps all this speeding up the finding 'true love' process. _

_Basically the werewolf and the girl he imprints on were destined to find each other, imprinting takes out all the guessing..._

I snapped the book shut looking back at Jared with a triumphant grin on my face. 'To translate that, you and I were basically going to end up together at some point, imprinting just sped up the process, so in other words your stuck with me whether you want me or not!' I finished. He flashed me a cocky smile slowly moving in closer so that our noses were almost touching.

'Good because I'm not going anywhere and neither are you!' he said hungrily, swooping in to steal another kiss. I could feel his explosive joy, amongst other explosive things as he kissed me. In one smooth motion he got up off the floor carrying me with him towards the bed, without breaking the kiss.

'Babe as much as I would like to take this further, we can't do this here,' I whispered breathlessly a moment later as Jared trailed hot kisses down my neck, pulling lightly at my skin with his teeth.

'Why not?' he moaned. I chuckled nervously before he cut me off with another kiss.

'I give you two good reasons, Lori and Sarah!' I whispered certain that it would kill the mood. He groaned into my neck knowing I was right. 'Look I know the door is locked but it's not soundproof!' I said indignantly.

He sighed rolling off me, breathing heavily. 'Do you have any idea what you do to me? I'm having a hard time controlling myself especially when you're dressed like this,' he whispered, his hand resting on my stomach.

'Don't you mean barely dressed?' I said slyly, knowing my PJ's didn't cover much. 'You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that,' I sighed, replaying those kisses in my head.

'I think I've got a pretty good idea!' he said furtively, waggling his eyebrows at me. I giggled at his facial expression guessing what he was thinking about.

The moment was shattered by someone pounding at the door, ugh go away! 'I don't care if you're decent or not Kimberly you need to get your arse down here pronto!' Sarah yelled. I groaned and rolled off the bed unlocking the door. She had a slightly amused look on her face. 'You better come down and see this!' she said wryly. I felt my eyebrows pull together as I followed her down the stairs. 'TRINITY!' I screeched as I spotted her sunrise coloured hair at the bottom of the staircase. We both started laughing as I sprinted down the staircase to give her a hug. 'Oh my God! What are you doing here?' I yelled excitedly, as she started rocking back and forth on her heels.

'Hey I promised you I'd get you some tickets didn't I,' she said flashing four tickets in front of my face. I looked between her and Lori's matching sheepish expressions.

'Hold on a sec how did you know to get 4 tickets? And how did you know where to find me?' I asked suspiciously, arching one eyebrow gracefully.

'It's her fault!' they both yelled at the same time pointing at each other. Lori looked over at Sarah to back her up, she just shook her head.

'I'm staying out of this; you were the one who answered the phone!' she said accusingly, I shot Lori a warning look.

'Hey I thought it might be important like Jared's Mom or something...' she trailed off.

'Jared's Mom has been ringing me! Why didn't you tell me?' I yelled, both of them nodded sheepishly.

'Oooh is that yummy guy's mom?' Trinity interrupted all three of us turned to look at her. She shot us confused looks. 'What? Did I say that out loud?' I couldn't help it I burst out laughing soon all three of them joined me.

'What's so funny?' a deep husky voice asked. I turned to see Jared standing at the top of the stairs, a small amused smile lighting his features.

'Uh Jared this is Trinity, Trinity this is Jared,' I said by way of introduction. Trinity's eyes bugled out her head.

'Why didn't you tell me he was up there?' she hissed furiously.

'Oh calm down Trinity, keep it in your pants!' I said as Jared came to stand next to me pulling me into his side.

'You still didn't tell me what was so funny?' he breathed in my ear.

'Uh secret girls business,' I amended winking at Trinity, she shot me a sly smile before zipping up her lips and throwing away the key. 'So do you want to go to a concert?' I asked changing the subject. Trinity held up the four tickets, fanning herself with them.

'When is it?'

'Tonight, 8pm don't be late!' Trinity yelled as she headed for the door...

'Kim come on! You have to come and meet the rest of the band oh and Trey wants to see you again...' I managed to tune out to most of Trinity's chatter as she dragged me and inadvertently Jared who had hold of my other hand backstage. The concert which was one in a whole stream of music acts for the month long festival had finished about half an hour ago and the park was almost empty. 'Guys I got some friends I want you to meet!' Trinity yelled a moment later. I soon spotted four other people congregated backstage.

I instantly recognised Trey's mop of straight purple hair he was laughing at something the tall guy with blonde hair had said. There was a girl with short spiky auburn hair packing up what I assumed to be her microphone she suddenly nudged a guy who was sprawled out asleep on the floor. His hair was jet black and he had a huge fringe that fell into his eyes. 'Trey you know,' Trey lifted his hand to wave at me. 'That's Aeron,' she said pointing at the blonde guy. 'That's Kiora and Zephyr,' she said pointing to spiky girl and fringe guy. 'Guys this is Kim, Jared, Lori and Sarah,' she said pointing to each of us as the last two ambled in the doorway.

'It's good to see you again Trey!' I called as Trinity stomped across the room to slap Zephyr around the back of the head. He just nodded at me, wincing as Trinity's hand made contact with Zephyr's head. 'Trinity stop abusing him trust me it's not going to wake him up!' said Kiora forcefully as she pulled Trinity off Zephyr. I could hear Lori laughing and I turned to see her flirting with Aeron, who seemed to be enjoying the attention. 'Jeez Lori can't you keep it in your pants for 5 minutes!' I teased, waggling my eyebrows at her. She blushed crimson and everyone beside Aeron laughed.

'I wouldn't bother Kim, its Aeron you should worry about not Lori,' Trinity smirked, while the other band members started chuckling. Aeron shot them all a dirty look.

Out the corner of my eye I could see Lori was calculating something and eyeing the scarf wrapped around my neck. 'Lori don't you AHH!' I shrieked as she ripped the scarf off my neck in one smooth motion, exposing the small dark bruises that looked the exact same shape as Jared's teeth. 'I could say the same thing about you Kim,' Lori said smugly, Sarah had a shocked look on her face, Trinity started giggling and Jared looked like he wanted to do the same. I tugged the scarf from Lori grasp and draped it back around my neck. 'I can't help the fact my boyfriend's a freaking caveman!' I sniffed causing the others to burst out laughing, even Jared so no one noticed my slip up.

'Wow look at the time I think we need to be going!' Sarah said tugging on Lori's arm, trying to drag her away from Aeron. I just shook my head as I went to give Trinity a parting hug.

'Next time you are definitely coming down to La Push!' I said pulling her into a tight hug.

'Of course I will!' she nodded waggling her eyebrows at me.

'Come on Kim, Sarah's threatening to leave us here,' Jared whispered I waved goodbye to the others before following him out. We scored the back seat of the car so I was more than content being wrapped tightly in his embrace snuggling into his warm chest. I was asleep before we got back to the apartment.


	21. Chapter 20: Taking Responsibility

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Hello faithful fanfic readers! I know it's been months since my last update and I could sit here forever and tell you about my final exams or that my Dad's been in hospital since Boxing Day but none of that makes up for the fact that I have neglected this fanfic. So you are more than welcome to rant and rave at me and I wouldn't be surprised if you'd given up on me but please be patient with me I promise I'll update quicker!**

**Anyway down to business only 2 reviews for the last chapter! Did you guys not like it! Anyway never mind that, here's the new one hope you like it and review, review, REVIEW!**

**Luv Juno**

**P.S. Disclaimer: I'm not the AMAZING Steph Meyer; I own none of her characters!**

Chapter 20 – Taking Responsibility

'You have to promise you'll come see us again soon,' Sarah whispered pulling me into a tight hug. I nodded wiping away a stray tear; I was definitely going to miss my big sister, both of them. They may have nearly driven me insane but I did love them dearly. Over Sarah's shoulder I could see Lori giving Jared one of her famous lectures. 'Now you take care of our Kimmy, because I have no problem kicking your arse if you don't!' she threatened.

'Smooth Lori, very smooth,' I said wryly, she waggled her eyebrows at me before wrenching me from Sarah's arms, choking me with one of her bear hugs. For someone so skinny she was _really_ strong! 'I'm gonna miss you Kimikaze, what am I gonna do without you!' she cried, bursting into fake tears.

'I'll miss you too Lark,' I laughed, using her old childhood nickname. She gave me one last squeeze before letting me go. I climbed into Jared's ute, rolling down the window I reached out so I could grab their hands. 'I'll be back soon, I promise!' I yelled out the window as Jared pulled away from the curb.

'And bring the cavemen with you when you do!' Lori yelled. The two of them chased the ute down the street until we turned the corner and headed out of sight. I wound the window back up and put my seatbelt on. I looked over at Jared only to find him grinning at me. I just shook my head and laughed, tucking a stray lock of crazy curly hair behind my ear. 'What else did Lori threaten to do to you if you if you didn't do what she wanted?' I asked 5 minutes later, after fiddling with the air conditioner and the stereo. He laughed freely, shaking his head.

'She threatened to _castrate_ me among other things...' he trailed off. I winced knowing exactly how colourful some of her threats could be. The ride back to La Push was fairly quiet but we talked sparingly. I kept going over possible homecoming scenarios in my head; would they be angry with me? Would they hate me? Or would they welcome me home? I kept going over what could possibly happen until it gave me a headache. I dozed off as the scenery turned from suburbs and green lawns to dark forests that spoke of magic and ancient secrets. Jared shook me awake as we reached the turn off to La Push.

I grew edgier as we approached the roads that would lead to my driveway and eventually the house. I could hear this annoying tapping noise as I stared out the window. I jumped when Jared reached out and put a hand on my knee, silencing the tapping noise. 'Kim calm down it's gonna be fine,' he reassured looking me in the eye as he said this. I gave him a small smile before he returned his hand to the steering wheel. My mind eventually drew blank as Jared turned into the driveway, my stress levels reaching breaking point.

Jared parked under a tree, right next to the porch. I noticed with some sarcasm that it was the same tree Jared had stopped under on Halloween, that first night he'd brought me home. Gotta love the symmetry. I slowly got out of the cab reaching over to pull my duffel out of the tray. I stared at the front of the house; it hadn't changed all that much seen the last time I'd seen it 2 weeks ago, Mom's pot plants looked a little more wilted and there was a pile of mail that had made its way out of the mailbox but not into the house. The facade of the house itself seemed greyer, like the paint had faded considerably in that last two weeks.

'You ready?' Jared asked holding his hand out to me. I looked down at his hand and then at the front of the house, it didn't seem like anyone was home.

'No but let's go!' I said slipping my hand into his. Together we trudged the last few steps up to the porch. 'Mom! Dad! Anybody home!' I yelled out, peering through the window. I shook my head and pulled my house key out of my back pocket. I slipped it into the keyhole and after several attempts managed to open the door. Inside, the house was deathly silent and seemed equally as cold and grey as the exterior. 'Hello?' I called out my voice drifting down the empty corridor and echoing off the back wall. I hesitantly walked further into the house, feeling like a stranger in my own home.

'They're probably still looking for you,' Jared whispered as he slipped an arm around my waist pulling me to his side. I nodded, swallowing past the lump forming in my throat. I pulled Jared into the kitchen suddenly feeling really hungry; he chuckled as I started rummaging around in the fridge. 'You read my mind,' he whispered softly his warm breath rustling my hair. I shivered involuntarily as I pulled the bread out of the fridge; I turned quickly to find him standing directly behind me. His dark eyes were bright and intense and full of mischief. I shook my head and thrust the bread into his hands.

'Easy tiger,' I muttered turning back to the fridge, I could feel his silent laughter in the soles of my feet. I pulled out the other ingredients needed for sandwiches, trying to ignore the electrical current flowing from me to Jared. Whenever he moved I knew exactly where he'd moved to without needing to use my eyes. It was driving me insane! Then he'd do other things like he'd accidently (not!) brush my arms or waist or back sending electrical currents across my skin and into my body. On the 5th brush I looked at him with raised eyebrows, he just proceeded to give me an innocent look and returned to buttering some slices of bread.

Fine if that's how he's gonna play it! I picked up my finished sandwich and walked out of the kitchen, swaying my hips as I went. I wanted to laugh as I sat at the dining table and started eating; he has no idea who he was messing with! I could hear him walking out of the kitchen; he was making his footsteps loud unlike his usual silent approach. I moaned my approval of my sandwich as he entered the dining room, his eyes widening at the sound. I wanted to laugh at his gobsmacked expression instead I just gave him an innocent look and returned to munching on my sandwich, making my movement purposely slow.

He proceeded to eye me suspiciously as he sat down at the table across from me. We sat in silence for a few moments, shooting each other glances over our sandwiches. Making the first move, I rubbed my foot against the inside of his leg; he jumped at the physical contact almost falling off his chair. I couldn't help but laugh at the shocked expression on his face as he realised what I was up to. I finished the rest of my sandwich without resorting to footsies and left the table feeling slightly smug. I started cleaning up the mess we'd made in the kitchen when he joined me; there was a glint in his eye that I couldn't quite place as I put the last of the lettuce in the fridge.

For some reason I felt that our unofficial war wasn't quite finished as he tailed me round the kitchen. He made his first move when I was standing in front of the sink, draining the water. He slipped his hands around my waist pulling me close to him. I could feel his warm breath in my hair, sending tingles radiating out from my neck; I shuddered under his touch as he pressed feather light kisses down my neck. He suddenly stopped and pulled away. I turned and saw a smug expression on his face and we both knew that he had won this battle. 'Well played Thail!' I scowled as he proceeded to laugh at me.

'Oh so you think this is funny do you?' I growled twirling the tea towel and then flicking my hand out to strike him with it. At the sudden crack of the tea towel striking his chest he stopped laughing and searched the immediate area for something to retaliate with. The moment he wasn't looking I made a break for the hallway twirling my tea towel to strike him again before I made my exit. 'Oh it's on Morgan!' he challenged as I unlocked the back door and ran across the yard hiding behind one of the massive pines on the fringe of the yard. I stealthily crept from tree to tree barely making it to a better position before Jared sprinted out the back door holding a tea towel and a spatula.

I practically had to shove my fist down my throat to stop the giggles from escaping. Ignoring the fact Jared looked ridiculous; I twirled my tea towel and made a break for it. He spun around so quickly and blocked my attack with the spatula and then flicked at me with his own tea towel. I was so surprised that I barely managed to dodge it. I did a quick cartwheel landing on my feet in a kung fu position. I twirled my tea towel and made a 'come hither' gesture. Jared threw me a quick grin before charging at me, I quickly side stepped him and flicked him on his arse before making a break for the back door. I couldn't hear his footfalls behind me, but I'd already fallen for that trick so I kept running towards the door.

I just made it back inside when I heard the sounds of the front door rattling, a moment later it opened to reveal my very weary looking parents and brothers. I stood there silently waiting for them to notice that I was standing there. While hanging up her coat, Mom noticed my boots sitting next to Daniel's recently discarded shoes. 'David aren't these Kim's?' she said bending down to pick up my boots. Dad furrowed his eyebrows staring at the boots as if he was trying to remember something. Mom stared at the boots a moment and then quickly looked around the room finally spotting me standing next to the back door. She shrieked dropping the boots covering her mouth with a shaking hand. 'Hi Mom,' I whispered past the lump forming in my throat.

Daniel poked his head out from the kitchen, his jaw dropping when he spotted me. Someone from behind me cleared their throat and everybody seemed to remember where we were. Then time seemed to start up again and Daniel and Isaac barrelled towards me, trapping me with both their arms. I couldn't help it; I started sobbing as they enveloped me in a tight hug. I wrapped my arms around both their necks and clung to them, I'm not quite sure whose shirt I was sobbing into. But neither of them seemed to mind. 'You are never doing that again!' Isaac growled as the both of them hugged me tighter. My only reply was to let out a sob/laugh as I pressed a kiss on both of their faces. When they finally let me go I was pushed straight into Mom's arms and I cried even harder.

She began sobbing as well and I could feel my shirt becoming damper. She pulled away to look me straight in the eye, my vision was blurry from all my tears and I could barely make out her tear stained face. 'Oh my Kimmy's home,' Mom muttered over and over again, I grumbled a little at the 'Kimmy' tag and she let me go. Dad was just standing their shell shocked his mouth gaping open at the scene unfolding in front of him. 'Hi Dad,' I mumbled sheepishly, wiping my face. He shook himself a little and pulled me into his arms. I cried into his jumper as he kissed the top of my head. 'I'm sorry Kim, so sorry,' he whispered and I nodded into his jumper letting him know it was ok. When I was released from Dad's hug I turned to see Mom was hugging Jared, well more like strangling him.

'Mom, Mom! Let Jared go he's turning purple!' I laughed, rushing over to rescue Jared from my mother's octopus hug.

'Thank you for bringing her home Jared, I honestly cannot thank you enough,' she said releasing him.

'Oh Mom stop embarrassing yourself!' I scolded noticing Jared had turned a bright shade of pink. I felt a little nervous as I saw Dad walk toward were I was standing with Mom and Jared, both his and Jared's expressions were unreadable. I was considerably shocked when Dad stretched a hand out to Jared; I was even more shocked when Jared shook it. Mom had an enormous grin on her face contrasting oddly with the tear tracks running down her cheeks.

She suddenly shrieked again causing all of us to jump. 'Oh I've gotta ring the others! They'll be dying to see you!' She squealed pushing past Dad and I into the kitchen for the phone. Dad huffed a sigh and followed after her. 'Darling surely this can wait! We've had Kim back for five minutes and you want to ring the Council!' he said incredulously. I audibly gulped, the Council! No way was I going anywhere near them at this moment. Jared slipped his hand into mine, sensing my distress. 'I wasn't going to ring the Council! But surely Deana needs to know her son's back!' Mom argued Jared stiffened at the mention of his mother's name. I squeezed his hand and pulled him into the kitchen.

Dan and Isaac were sprawled out on the tiny couch in front of the TV and Dad was trying unsuccessfully to wrestle the phone off Mom without harming her. 'Alright break it up!' I said letting go of Jared's hand and pulling the phone off my Mom. 'Alright here's the compromise, Mom you can ring Mrs Thail and tell her Jared's back but that's it! I will ring anyone else that needs to know I'm back, the rest will find out in due course.' I said handing the phone back to Mom. She eagerly punched in the number and began talking rapidly to Jared's mom. Dad watched her with rapt fascination as she trilled into the phone.

I just shook my head and pushed Jared back out of the kitchen. 'I suppose that I've only got you to myself for another five minutes,' I said looking at the imaginary watch on my wrist.

'Three knowing my Mom,' he smiled as I pulled open the front door. The weather had turned even chillier, the wind whistling across the porch slicing through making me even colder. I tried to control my shivers but to no avail. 'Where's your coat Kim?' Jared said, still smiling. I smiled quietly to myself.

'Who needs a coat when I've got you,' I said as he obligingly wrapped his arms around my waist.

'Can you tell if the twins have...um...you know?' I asked awkwardly. He shook his head resting his chin on my shoulder.

'They haven't Kim, I'd be able to smell it and besides they're not unstable enough yet,' he said calmly. Relief shot through me, thankful that I didn't have to add them to my growing list of people I needed to worry about, Jared being at the very top. 'Right on time,' he whispered, I turned slightly throwing him a confused look until I heard the sounds of a car pulling into the driveway. A small blue car suddenly appeared out of the pines and parked right next to Jared's ute.

A tall willowy woman pulled herself gracefully out of the driver's side and I watched as Jared jumped off the porch and embraced her, his mother, Deana Thail. She let out a small sob which she tried to muffle with the back of her hand. I couldn't help but be overcome by the power of the moment. I came to realise that all Jared really had was his mother and all she had was him, quite the opposite of my loud, overbearing and sometimes embarrassing family. They pulled away and Jared stuck his hands in his pockets, his head bowed, in what I recognised as a sheepish act. From the furious whispered sounds I could pick up it sounded as if she was scolding him. I bit back a laugh at the thought of anyone scolding Jared.

I felt nervous as the two of them approached the house, what if she didn't like me? 'Hello Mrs Thail, it's nice to finally meet you,' I said smiling shyly.

'Oh I'm not having any of that!' she said brusquely, pulling me into a hug. I'm fairly sure Jared noticed my eyes widening in shock as I hugged her back. 'Oh and its Deana not Mrs Thail, it's a pleasure to finally meet you Kim,' she said, giving Jared a sidelong glance. 'My son has terrible manners! I can't understand why it's taken him so long to introduce us!' she said pulling me into another hug. It was official, I adored Jared's mom she was completely adorable.

Our introduction was cut short by the arrival of my Mom, all energy and exuberance. She pulled Deana into the house offering her tea and biscuits, probably hoping they could bond over the return of their wayward teenagers. I just shook my head at her as she proceeded to force feed both Deana and Jared (not that Jared seemed to mind). Deana finally managed to turn down a 5th cup of tea saying she and Jared really needed to get home. So here we were saying goodbye, partially hidden from the prying eyes of our mothers' by the cab of his ute. 'I don't quite want to go back to reality yet,' I whispered, hoping for a moment it could just stay this way, just me and Jared.

'Me too,' he said sadly, brushing my hair back behind my ear before pressing a soft kiss on my lips. We pulled away at the sound of a polite cough, feeling slightly embarrassed about getting caught. 'Bye,' he whispered, pressing a kiss to my forehead before getting into his ute and driving away. I trudged back up to the house and wrapped an arm around my Mom.

'It really is good to have you home, sweetheart,' Mom whispered, squeezing my shoulders.

'It's nice to be home Mom and I really am sorry for everything,' I said quietly, a tear leaking out the corner of my eye.

'You have nothing to be sorry for my darling; it must have come as a shock,' she said resting her head on my shoulder. I snorted remembering my reaction.

'You have no idea!' I scoffed, shivering slightly at the cold. We entered the house as the wind picked up slightly, feeling suddenly drained I headed towards the staircase.

'Kimmy I think that boy is in love with you,' Mom said quietly, I turned to look at her incredulously. She just stood there smiling at me slyly. I just shook my head as I walked up the stairs. My thoughts turned to the girls as I plopped onto my bed. I needed to talk to them...needed to see them really.

I rushed back out of my room and downstairs to grab the cordless phone. My family just stared at me as I ran back upstairs like a mad thing. Plopping back on my bed, I thought about which one of them I should call first. I decided to call Bek since she lived the closest and they would probably all be congregated there. I eagerly punched in the number and tried to be patient. 'Hello!' said an equally eager Deb; I'd been right on the money when I'd said they'd be at Bek's house.

'Hi hon, are Bek and Eve there?' I asked, amusement colouring my tone. I started laughing as she shrieked at Eve and Bek to get their butts over to the phone.

'Don't you dare laugh Kimberly Morgan, this is so not funny!' she said in deadly voice that made me not argue with her. Suddenly all I could hear were the sounds of scuffling and grunting.

'Give me the phone!'

'No I wanna talk to her!'

'No you're just gonna yell at her!'

'So she needs to be yelled at!'

'Not if she's got a good reason!' I just shook my head and proceed to bang the phone against my bed frame. The scuffling noise stopped.

'Well done Eve you've broken the phone!' Deb grumbled. I just started laughing again, grabbing their attention.

'Bek doesn't your phone have speaker?' I asked, I heard several smacking sounds followed by Eve saying 'Well duh genius!' I heard a beeping noise and then all three of them started talking at once so it sounded something like, 'KIMMY! Where on earth...I'm gonna kick...are you home...we've been...you are so dead...do you know...and then Jared goes missing...shut up Eve...you shut up Deb.' I started laughing again at their ridiculousness and they soon joined me.

'Well this is never going to work! How fast can you get over here?' I asked, hearing nothing but the sounds of scurrying feet and the distant sounds of a door opening and then slamming shut. 'Hello!' I yelled, obviously they'd forgotten to hang up the phone. I shook my head and hung up the phone. Barely a second later all three of them barrelled into my room and threw themselves at me. 'KIMMY!' they yelled pilling on top of my bed. After several minutes of shrieking and crying and several rounds of hugs we were all seated cross legged on my floor in a circle. Bek was sitting on my right, playing with the sleeve of my shirt; Deb was sitting on my left pinching my toes when she thought I wasn't paying any attention and Eve was sitting in between the two of them facing me, she was bouncing up and down where she sat.

'I can't believe you're home!' Eve squealed clapping in time to her bounces. I exchanged glances with Deb and Bek we just shook our heads.

'I can't believe you guys left me hanging,' I snorted shaking the phone at them. Bek and Eve had the sense to look sheepish, Deb just looked defiant

'That's just payback, do you have any idea what you put us through!' she yelled, pinching my toes. Bek glared at her as I tried to remove Deb's fingers from my feet.

'What Deb is trying to say is that we missed you and that you are never going to leave us again,' Bek translated, throwing one of my pillows at Deb.

'Aww I missed you guys too, and I've already promised Mom and Dad and the twins and Jared that I won't be leaving them any time soon,' I said ticking off the list of names on my fingers. The second I mentioned Jared their jaws dropped, the silence was broken by the sound of Bek's laughter. 'Alright you two pay up!' she laughed as Deb and Eve threw 20 dollar bills at her. Now it was my turn to look dumbfounded. 'You were making bets about me and Jared!' I shrieked, all three of them gave me similar 'you honestly think we wouldn't' looks. Bek cleared her throat.

'Actually we made a bet on whether you would see Jared or us first; I said that Jared would have been down here faster than a hot potato once he knew you were home,' she said triumphantly, mirroring Deb's usual tone.

I snickered and shook my head; Bek shot me a curious look but stayed silent. 'He um brought me home actually,' I said sheepishly, looking around the room rather than at any of them. Not a smart thing to do as I was suddenly beaten over the head by three different pillows. 'YOU *smack* ARE *thud* WITHHOLDING *wack* VITAL *Ow!* INFORMATION! NOW SPILL! *splat* as Eve's pillow ripped in two, covering me in feathers. I sighed making a 'Phoof' noise, spitting feathers onto the floor. 'You really want to know?' I asked shaking feathers out of my hair. AS usual Eve looked eager for any bits of gossip she could garner, Deb looked suspicious she wasn't as trusting of Jared as the other two were and Bek just glared at the both of them, I presume Jared's defending my honour the day were suspended has cleared him of all past wrong doings.

I pushed a bunch of feathers out of my lap and rolled forward onto my knees. 'Well long story short, he followed me to Seattle we had a big long intense conversation which ended with lots of kissing and he basically brought me home.' I summarised, hoping to satisfy their curiosity. I was unsure of what to tell them but I knew in no uncertain terms that they could never know that Jared and half the other guys in our year turn into werewolves on a regular basis. But I suppose I could spill a few of my own... I got three different reactions to my confession.

'You were in SEATTLE the ENTIRE time!'

'You KISSED him!'

'That still doesn't explain why you ran away,'

I didn't know who to look at first; Deb was obviously disgruntled that I'd been only a stone's throw away; Eve was totally jazzed about my kissing escapades with Jared and Bek as usual got bogged down by the lack of information. 'Yes I was in Seattle, with SARAH!' I hissed, crawling over to the door, checking to make sure that there were no brothers or parents listening in before shutting it. 'Wait Sarah's been in Seattle for the past year!' Bek said incredulously, I nodded shushing her. My sister left La Push under a cloud of suspicion, her behaviour wasn't befitting of a respectable young lady who'd just buried her grandmother.

Our semi nomadic lifestyle of moving from one large city to the next gave her the travel bug and a terrible case of 'itchy feet'. Living in the sprawling urban landscape of Seattle sated her lust for travel, but I was unsure of how long it would be before I received a phone call telling me she was going back to New York or going somewhere we hadn't been like China or Australia. 'Would you keep your voices down! Mom and Dad don't know she's that close!' I hissed, silently swearing them all to secrecy.

Bek looked at me sympathetically as she forcibly removed my hand from her mouth. I knew that look all too well, it meant she was about to ask some serious questions. 'Oh go on Bek spit it out!' I said tiredly, already sick of dodging the truth. Deb patted my arm peaceably, shooting Bek a cautious glance. 'Kim why? Why would you do that to us?' she said mournfully, as a few tears leaked out the corner of her liquid brown eyes. I instantly felt guilty again as I gave her a hug. I should have known that Bek would take my disappearance personally; she would've thought that there was more she could have done to get me to stay. 'I'm sorry you guys I really am, I just needed to clear my head too much was happening and I couldn't make sense of it all. I needed some distance and space.' I said looking at each of them in turn.

Eve nodded handing Bek a tissue. 'She knows that, we all do, you're not one to run from anything Kim,' she said honestly. Bek wiped her face and gave a watery chuckle.

'But on a serious note, what is going on Kim? First Jared and Paul disappear; okay I will admit they never really spent that much time in school in the first place but then Embry and Jake fall off the face of the earth then there's your little disappearing act and Quil's totally odd behaviour. Seriously even Eve admits that all five of these guys have been seen in the presence of Sam Uley who if memory serves me correctly went AWOL for two weeks a year ago.' Bek paused to take a breath.

'I know Bek, I know but my _disappearing_ _act_ is totally unrelated,' I said trying to change the subject and take the heat off the boys, this conversation was entering dangerous territory.

'How is it _totally_ _unrelated_?' Deb asked, shooting Bek another cautious glance. What is going on with my friends? Normally it's Bek who's telling Deb to watch her language, not the other way round.

I sighed, shuffling closer into the circle. 'I'll tell you, but you have got to promise that you will never tell another soul!' I whispered, looking each of them in the eye. Eve crossed her heart and her fingers, Deb said, 'I'll take it to the grave,' and Bek nodded her head and shuffled closer.

'I found out the day after my suspension that Gran left her place on the Council to me in her will that I can take up when I'm 18,' I whispered, shooting furtive glances at the door. Three jaws dropped simultaneously. Bek was the first to find her voice. 'Are you sure?' she asked as the others continued to stare at me, mouths agape. I nodded, rubbing my eyes.

'And your parents kept it from you?' Deb tone was incredulous, putting two and two together. I nodded again. Eve lay slumped on the floor, staring at the ceiling as if she was wondering how it got there. 'What a bitch!' she whispered, I threw her a quizzical look before bursting into giggles at her exclamation.

Five minutes later we were all sprawled out on the floor, giggling hysterically at Eve. Deb pulled herself into a sitting position, wiping tears from her eyes. She nudged me with her foot. 'How's Sarah?' she asked, pushing her short black hair out of her eyes.

'She's good, doing better than I expected,' I said pushing Bek's feet out of my lap.

'Do you think she'll take off anytime soon?' Eve asked, making faces at Bek who was the only one still lying on the floor.

'Nah, I think she's done running for the time being, but then again I could get a phone call in a month's time telling me she's off to Moscow or Phuket for 6 months,' I scoffed, poking Bek in her belly, she squirmed away from me only to run into Eve, who started tickling her mercilessly. Deb and I joined in and soon all four of us were shrieking over our tickle war.

Deb came out triumphant, taking prime position on my bed, Eve was sitting on my desk chair, Bek on the floor and I got the bean bag. I figured now was as good a time to tackle to elephant in the room. 'Bekka what happened after I left?' I pleaded, making puppy dog eyes at her. Eve and Deb started laughing and Bek turned bright red and managed to look sad. 'Let me guess...' I said, tapping a finger against my chin. Deb and Eve were still experiencing 'mustn't laugh' chuckles as Bek ditched a couple of pencils off my desk at them. 'It's Embry isn't' I said, frankly and she nodded. 'What happened Bekka?' She looked like she was gonna cry, Deb and Eve were sharing murderous looks.

'Embry came back to school a few days ago and uh,' she paused, grabbing a tissue off the desk. I grabbed her free hand as she dried her eyes and wiped her nose. 'He won't talk to me,' she cried, dissolving into tears. I pulled Bek into my arms as she cried looking to Eve and Deb to fill me in on the rest of the story.

'He's been avoiding everyone he normally hangs out with and now he hangs out with Paul and according to Quil he was avoiding him and Jacob for weeks before hand,' Eve said.

'Bek we told you not to take it personally, you're not the only person he's been avoiding,'

*SLAP*

'Ow! What was that for?'

'You don't do sympathetic very well Deb,' Eve said shaking her head, Deb stuck her tongue out at her. I threw both of them a reproachful look as Bek surfaced, hiccupping slightly.

'I'm sorry it's just that every time I've tried to talk to him, he finds a way to avoid talking to me or looking at me,' she sighed, reminiscing. If Embry looked anything like Jared did then Bek was gonna spend a whole lot of time looking at him and thinking about him.

'Well at least now you can ogle him without getting caught,' I joked, causing Bek to snort. I had caught the both of them eyeing each other off in class more than once though I don't think either of them knew that I knew. 'It's something I've done,' Bek shook her head mournfully. I rolled my eyes at Deb and Eve, Bek was being a girl.

'Rebekah Andrews! You have done absolutely nothing wrong and you know it! From what you've just described it seems that Embry Call is suffering from a severe case of verbal constipation...'

'Seriously Kim? Verbal constipation is your diagnosis?'

'Shhh Deb... Anyway this has obviously been brought about by the fact that he finds you intimidating...'

'Intimidating!' Bek looked slightly insulted.

'You're a hot, smokin' girl Bek, why wouldn't he find it hard to approach you and tell you how he feels,' I raised an eyebrow and gave her the 'you know I'm right' look. She sat up and wiped her face with the tissue I handed her.

'She's right Bekka, you know she is,' Eve said frankly, Deb gave her a hard look. She sighed harshly, glaring fiercely at the three of us.

'I know!' she said, laughing at our triumphant expressions. Despite her happy demeanour I was clearly going to kick some werewolf butt tomorrow...

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	22. Chapter 21: Emily's Pearls of Wisdom

**Secrets, Werewolves and Coming Home**

**Hello to all those who are still reading this story I am very sorry for the extreme lack of updates in the past few months. Blame the fact that I am well into my first semester of University and am still finding my feet! Anyway down to business! OMG! Last chapter 7 reviews! I am ecstatic that is officially the most amount of reviews I have received for a chapter and I'm now almost at 70 reviews! I only need 4 more! Thank you to everyone who has been exceedingly patience and has even reviewed to get me to finish this chapter quicker! Your patience has been rewarded here's a new one, took me forever to write as I had several different ways I could go but I like this better! Anyway ENJOY and you know the drill review, Review, REVIEW!**

**Luv Juno**

Chapter 21 – Emily's Pearls of Wisdom

'Mom I'm going to Jared's!' I called sprinting down the stairs and slinging my jacket on at the same time. Dan and Isaac appeared at the bottom of the stairs, identical grins splayed across their faces. 'Where are you going Kimmy?' Dan asked, tauntingly; Isaac giggled for good measure.

'Giggling! Really Isaac!' I said dryly, sidestepping both of them.

'Say hi to Deana for me!' Mom yelled, causing the twins to wince at the volume.

'I will Ma!' I yelled back, shaking my head as I exited the back door. I padded silently across the backyard and into the forest. Jared and I had discovered a couple of days after coming home that there was a short cut from my place to his along the fringe of the forest, he didn't like me using it but I had no fear of the forest. I'd been wandering around in it for as long as I could remember and it was one of the things I really missed after we moved. I've lived in a lot of different places, I'd even lived outside of the country for a while but nothing compared to being here, this truly was home. The walk took me 10 minutes and I relished the quiet for those brief moments, I hadn't been alone since I'd been home someone was always close by, someone was always watching.

Even being alone with Jared was a blessing in disguise and we spent the majority of our spare time at his house since my Mom or my brothers were always hovering nearby. I laughed briefly to myself remembering the first time I was in Jared's room and the look on his face when I discovered what he'd done with the pen I'd given him that first day in English and the towel I'd used that day at the beach. Priceless. He was so embarrassed but I thought it was cute. I hadn't officially met the pack, Jared had wanted to give me a few days at home before he introduced me to them so I hadn't as yet kicked Embry's wolfy butt for all but breaking Bek's heart. I also chose not to mention that I knew most of them on a first name basis already.

He'd distracted me with research into neutralisers and the odd make out session in between. But those when getting increasingly interrupted when his mother thumped down the hall opening his bedroom door as wide as the hinges would allow before fixing us with an overly cheery smile, I guess she didn't want to be a grandma any time soon. Breaking out of the cover of the trees I walked around the side of the house to the front door, stopping to examine the potted roses which were looking a little worse for wear. I picked up the tiny bowl from behind the pot and walked over to the outside tap, filling it with water and dripping it between the two potted roses.

'Hey D!' I called strolling in through the open screen door. She gracefully pushed herself out of her seat, leaving her half written manuscript on the table to give me a hug. Deana Thail was my new best friend she was just way too cool to be a mom and Jared was so lucky to have her. I'd berated him more than once for not giving her the slightest amount of warning when he came looking for me at my sister's place. 'Hi Kim, how's Ruth?' she asked, pulling her glasses off her nose. I still couldn't fathom at the friendship that had struck up between my mother and Deana. They were polar opposites. Deana was cool and easy going (except when I was in Jared's room) whereas my Mom was flaky and just took things way too seriously.

'She's good, she says hi, where's Jared?' I ask looking around the room for my 6 ft 4 werewolf... not quite sure how to finish that thought but I did think of him as my boyfriend. She chuckled propelling me in the direction of Jared's room. 'Maybe you'll have more luck waking him up than I've had,' she said wryly. I laughed and threw a horrified glance at the clock. Jeez the man can sleep. I hate to know what would happen when we were unsuspended. I peeked my head into his room to find him exactly as Deana had said. He was dead to the world. He was completely adorable while he was asleep, he would roll around in his bed and eventually wrap himself tightly in his sheets that he wouldn't be able to get free when he woke up.

He looked more like the Jared I'd developed a humongous crush on two years ago than Jared the werewolf while he was sleeping. But as much as I loved watching him sleep, I like awake and alert Jared much better and watching people sleep was just plain creepy. 'Jared,' I said softly in a sing songy voice. His only response was to roll over so his back was facing me. I frowned at his sleeping back and as much as I liked the back of Jared I like his front much better. Grumbling I walked around to the other side of the bed and poked him sharply in the shoulder. 'Wake UPPP!' I shrieked as he grabbed my arm pulling onto the bed with him. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for him to start laughing or something. I carefully opened one eye to find him still asleep and that he had both arms wrapped tightly around me pinning my arms to my sides.

'Jared wake up!' I said in a strained voice as his grip pushed air out of my lungs. He started mumbling and then his snoring picked up again. I frowned and started wriggling around trying to escape his grip only to have him tighten his grip even more. Frustrated I kicked him in the shins he groaned and went to roll over. 'Jared you're squishing me!' I choked out. His eyes suddenly shot open in shock. 'Kim? KIM!' he finally realised that he was crushing me and backed away, only to forget how tiny his bed is and fall off it.

'Jared are you okay?' I asked turning so I was face to face with him. He had a sleepy confused look on his face that was downright hilarious when coupled with the fact he was sitting on the floor.

'I think I should be asking you that? I almost crushed you!' he said horrified, stifling a yawn. I smiled and shook my head.

'Well you didn't,' I said cheekily, pulling him in for a kiss. He cradled the back of my head with one hand and swiftly pulled me off the bed with the other. I laughed against his mouth as I landed with a slight plop on top of him. I could feel him smile as he pulled me closer. 'I could get used to a good morning like this!' he said cockily.

'Correction good afternoon!' I retorted, placing both hands on his chest. He looked at me in shock and sat up looking around for a clock.

'What's the time?' he asked, wrapping an arm around my waist to keep me in place on his lap.

'It's after 2,' I laughed watching his expression. 'What were you doing last night?' I asked, finally taking note of the fact that he wasn't wearing a shirt.

'Um...wolf...stuff,' he said warily, I motioned for him to elucidate. He sighed heavily, 'I was on patrol, with Quil and Paul,' he said, smoothing away the frown lines in my forehead with his fingers.

'Patrol? What are you patrolling?' he threw me dirty look.

'We only exist for one reason Kim,' he said knowingly. My eyes widened.

'There are vampires here!' I said incredulously. Jared's face turned slightly green as he nodded. I hugged him closer out of instinct and shuddered, I didn't have a clear picture of what Jared looked like as a wolf but I didn't like the idea of him being out there destroying vampires, wolf or not. Jared stiffened turning his head towards the window as if sensing something or hearing something my feeble human ears couldn't. 'Damn it!' he swore, springing up from the floor and dragging me with him.

'What is it?' I asked confused as he pulled me out of his room, down the hall, past his Mom and out the door. 'Jared what the hell is going on!' I said planting my feet before we reached his ute.

'I don't know maybe a vampire, maybe a new wolf,' he said letting go of my arm and unlocking the passenger door. Unconsciously I reached for the handle and opened the door just as Jared started up the ute. 'What are you doing?' I asked, hopping onto the seat.

'I'm taking you to Emily's, then I'll see what Sam wants,' he said roughly, pulling out of the driveway.

I fumbled for my seat belt as Jared made a sharp right turn, slamming me into the side of the cab. I shot him a dirty look, which he ignored with single minded determination. It seemed as if we'd barely been driving for 5 minutes when Jared made another sharp turn. I thought for a minute we were heading into the forest, then I realised it was just a cleverly hidden track. He continued down this track for a way, the forest was thick around us. He eventually stopped in front of a tiny house in the clearing. I looked confused as he leapt out of the truck, leaving the door wide open. I heard a faint sound, somewhere beyond the edge of the tree line, it sounded like the ripping of material. I sighed furiously; I clearly wasn't going to get any answers from Jared anytime soon.

Out the corner of my eye I could see a figure moving about on the porch. Shaking my head in annoyance I slid across the seat and wrenched Jared's keys from the ignition, a devious smile flitted across my face. He wasn't getting these back until I got an explanation. I quickly hid the keys in a place I knew Jared wouldn't look before hopping out the door he'd left open. As I walked towards the house I readied myself for meeting Wolf Girl No.1. It wasn't exactly a secret of what happened to Emily Young; the public story was that she'd been attacked by a bear around a year ago. Jared set me straight a few days ago, Sam was responsible for Emily's scars, not some rogue Grizzly Bear.

Her face was a constant reminder of the consequences of upsetting an unstable werewolf, for both imprint and werewolf. Jared had prepared me for meeting Emily and told me that seeing her scars for the first time would be shocking, that was an understatement. The whole left side of her face was marred by three ugly lines that ran from her temple to her to the corner of her mouth, so the left side of her mouth was turned down slightly. The main scar lines feathered and tapered out giving the healed skin a rough look. The strange thing was that I couldn't find it in me to pity her; this was the life she'd picked, in the end she'd chosen Sam and her scars were a part of her, she didn't let them define her.

'Kim?' Emily asked as I hopped onto the porch. I nodded a smile curving its way across my face.

'Wolf Girl number 1 I presume,' I commented dryly, she laughed stepping forward to give me a hug.

'I think I'm going to like having you around,' she chuckled, pulling me into the house. Sitting at the dining table, pouring over one of Emily's many recipe books I tried to help her decide what to cook for the boys before they got back. In between we swapped our own imprinting stories, I got the inside information on the Emily and Sam love story, which didn't end happily for everyone.

'I still say spaghetti bolognese is the tried and true favourite you should go with that!' I said for the umpteenth time in the last 5 minutes as the two of us argued over two different recipes. She rolled her eyes at me and flipped the page over to show me the potato bake she wanted to make. 'We had pasta last week!' she stressed, pointing at the potato bake on the page. I shook my head and shook the packet of pasta at her. 'Come on Em! It's quick, easy and you can cook it in larger quantities!' I pleaded. Emily had a rueful smile on her face as she gazed at her tiny little oven that couldn't possibly cook enough potato bake in the quantities she wanted in time for the boys to get back. She sighed heavily, 'Fine you've convinced me! Spaghetti it is!' she announced rather loudly.

I proceeded to do a happy dance with the packet of pasta, while a bemused Emily watched and just shook her head. 'Come on Wolf Girl No. 2!' she laughed, wrenching the packet of pasta from my hands and strolling into the kitchen. I made a disgruntled noise as I followed her; helping her to lift the enormous pot onto the stove and filling it with water. 'How long do you reckon we've got?' I asked, watching as little bubbles started to appear on the surface of the water moments later. She glanced at the clock and fixed me with a warm smile. 'We've got plenty of time,' she said, opening the cupboard and thrusting a can of tinned tomatoes at me.

An hour or so later as Emily and I were watching a large pot of meat sauce simmer on the stove the back door banged open and Sam stuck his head in the doorway seconds later. 'Mmm that smells great, we're gonna need it. We've got two more,' he said, pulling her into his side and planting a kiss on her cheek. I averted my eyes, feeling like I was intruding on a private moment. 'Oh hello Kim I didn't see you there!' I snorted and Emily just rolled her eyes at me.

'So Alpha who are the new recruits?' I asked, trying and failing to keep the teasing out of my tone. He threw me a wry smile and didn't answer until Emily gave him a level look.

He sighed heavily and his eyes took on this sad faraway look. 'Seth and Leah Clearwater,' he said morosely. Emily gasped and I could feel my eyebrows pulling down in confusion.

'I thought only male Quileutes could phase and become werewolves?' Sam shook his head and sighed.

'So did I until today, we've had our first casualty too,' he said sadly. Both Emily and I sent him a quizzical look. 'Seth's little friend Aysha* got caught in the crossfire, dislocating her shoulder. She claims she did it falling out of a tree but both Seth and Leah's versions of events say differently. I also want to know how she managed to scale a 60 ft tree, injured and in under 5 minutes,'

'Be careful with her Sam, you hurt her and her Gran will have your head on a platter,' Emily said, moving out of his embrace to check on the sauce.

'Do you think she could be a...?'

'That's what I want to find out, the only other kinds of creatures I've seen do that are vampires and she certainly doesn't smell like one,' Sam answered, he reached over and pulled Emily into another kiss. 'I've got to get back Seth's having trouble calming down, he just wants to get over to the hospital and Jacob started a fight with Leah, but I just thought I'd fill you in,' I shook my head as Sam left.

'At least _someone_ bothers to tell me what's going on,' I muttered sipping on a glass of water. Emily threw me a dark look. I sighed setting my glass back on the bench. 'Jared just dropped me off here without telling me anything! All he said was it may be a vampire or a new wolf and then springs out of the truck without so much seeya later,' I huffed grumpily. Emily just chuckled quietly sticking the lid back on the pot of sauce. 'He's not used to having you know his secret, give him some time and the communicating will get easier,' I nodded and smiled coyly to myself.

'But that doesn't mean I can't have some fun until then!' she laughed at my comment.

'Of course! What did you do with his keys?' she asked in a hushed whisper as if the pack would come bounding through the door at any moment. I laughed and tapped the side of my nose cryptically. 'I was right, I'm gonna like having you around,' she chuckled, the sound warming the air around us. Oh boy Jared would not know what hit him!

*** As I was writing this, her name kinda jumped out and made me think about her story and also what happened the first time Seth and Leah phased? Anyway remember her cause I will be posting her and Seth's story up real soon! Currently titled Girl in the White Dress but that may changed! Anyway review and tell me what you think?**** Juno**


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